Streaming, Paul Style

Super Sunday Research...

2011-01-21T18:37:00.001-04:00

So, Super Bowl 45 is around the corner, a little more than two weeks away. We normally host a party for the big game, and our tradition is to put on a spread that features food indigenous to the cities represented by the teams playing in the big game.

This is no joke. There is some SERIOUS research that goes into this, which often involves a week or so of active dialogue on message boards for the teams (no easy thing- posting as a non-fan and asking kindly for help to put on a great party) to discover authentic dishes, and then locating recipes to make them.

We usually start conducting preliminary research once the final four are determined after the conference semi-finals.

We are WICKED thrilled that our team, the Green Bay Packers, remain in the hunt for the title, not only because they're our team, but also because the food for the Packers kicks ass. Beer Broiled Brats on a bun with mustard and brine kraut, chicken booyah and some type of super rich bread pudding with rum sauce. That's a far better alternative to the Chicago slate from the NFC, although we will make it work if we have to.

So this is me, reaching out to the internet, asking for denizens of New York City, Pittsburgh, Green Bay and Chicago to post ideas for food that one would find at legit tailgating spots at home games as comments.

Thanks all- looking forward to your ideas!

Not the only one...

2011-01-15T12:11:00.000-04:00

Yep, I love allusions to pop culture.

Now onto the main idea. I have often opined about the dinosaur-era public awareness strategy employed by the NSTU since I moved back to Halifax from Montreal in 2001.

As a newly permanent teacher with the English Montreal School Board, I felt like our union was militaristic- nothing happened that they didn't monitor or report in terms of respect our collective agreement. In some respects I felt like the tactics used by the MTA contributed to a relationship with administration (who were represented in collective bargaining by an entity complete other than the MTA, which is a whole other can of worms for another post), but then I discovered the joy of working in Nova Scotia under the popular myth that the Nova Scotia Teachers Union was the most powerful and feared union in the province (or so Brian Forbes and Mary Lou Donnelly, the two most recent past presidents, repeatedly told our membership).

Here, NO ONE monitored violations of the collective agreement. Principals wanted to have multiple, two hour staff meetings per month? Not a peep. Sure, we won an article in the last contract that stated that staff meetings had to conclude 90 minutes after the end of the instructional day. And then NSTU executive staff officer Gerard Cormier, whose office in the ivory tower one would assume meant proximity to intimate knowledge of recent wins, came as a guest and blew away that statute in a presentation that went 45 minutes past our agreement. Who needs admin to violate the contract when our own executive staff members, paid six figures to represent our interests in collective bargaining, are willing to do it for them?

And NO ONE talked to the press, pretty much ever, unless in reaction to an overnight controversy- no proactive presence, no strategy to leverage the power of local radio, TV or print media on a regular basis to get the issues facing education in our province into the public head space consistently through informed presentation and debate of teacher perspectives. In ten years, I can count on one hand the number of times I have heard our president on local talk radio, and those times have been limited to responding to requests by the host rather than the president reaching out and requesting air time, as other leaders have done (Peter Kelly, Darrell Dexter and assorted federal MPs, to name a few).

BUT, do we do smarmy nondescript holiday ads! Mary Lou and Alexis have perfected the 30 second, smiling president with babies and young children spots in the past five years. If any media presence is better than none, then I guess this one step would count as quantum improvement. However, as part of the first always on media-steeped generation, any coverage is NOT better coverage.

Yesterday, the Chignecto Regional School Board held a public meeting to outline their proposal to cut 21% of their budget over the next three years, as per the request of the Minister of Education. In TV coverage, Joan Jessome (head of the union that represents educational program assistants) was asked why the NSTU has maintained near radio silence with catastrophic cuts being bandied about rather than go on the offensive and make it clear to Nova Scotians what cuts of this magnitude would mean about the quality of education in our public schools.

Jessome, in what can only be described as a non-answer, essentially said that she can't fathom a 21% cut and what it would do.

It's disturbing that the NSTU can't recognize how feeble it has becoming in advocating for quality in education. Nova Scotia has languished near the very bottom of per capita funding for education for well over a decade, and until we launched a campaign called Save Grade 2 last year, you'd never know funding was an issue based on the the non-communication of the crisis to the public by the NSTU over that same period. When the Dexter government was elected, the NSTU collectively jumped for joy, fully expecting that an NDP government would finally give education its due. Then Community College faculty got a 1% pay raise in the first year of their new collected agreement and nothing for the remainder. Friendly indeed!

Now, with the same NDP government rumbling about cutting 21% (aside: I'm just waiting for someone to utter the phrase "read my lips" after hearing how this whole thing is just about getting information... Where there's smoke, I think the saying goes...), the best our president, earning 150% of her normal teaching/administrative salary to herald the cause of teachers to the public and government, can do is to talk about how stressed we are.

I wondered if this was only distressing to me, but the response from the meeting held by the Chignecto Regional School Board shows that not only are union members within the NSTU questioning the sanity of paying around $700 annually for such ineffective leadership and representation, but the public, fellow labour partners, school boards and others who have heard the NSTU spout longstanding rhetoric about being the stewards and leaders of public education are following suit too.

Perhaps I will come off as ageist, but I have said it before and I'll say it again. The fact that so many of our executive staff officers have spent a decade or more at the palace on Joe Howe DriveScotia since the Savage Liberals gutted education with cuts in the 90's that schools, students and teachers have never recovered from.

If I take any comfort in our present bumbling, it's that I finally have company on the wagon that recognizes that the NSTU stopped being relevant or effective a long time ago and is now a laughingstock without credibility to all the stakeholders we need support from to make our schools truly effective. To all the newcomers onboard? It's a disheartening ride with no end in sight. Wanna share a seat cushion?

Snow days don't just bring snow...

2011-01-12T21:46:00.002-04:00

...every year when we start to get snow and people postulate whether school will or won't be cancelled, there's the inevitable bevy of media banter about how too much time for learning is lost due to inclement weather in Nova Scotia and an ill ignored factor in low student performance overall in terms of academic basics (and, yes, I'm talking about the thankfully departed Andrew Krystal and the perpetually teacher-dogging Rick Howe).

I get that these guys are paid to get people riled up as a means to generate listenership and revenue, so, to a degree, their annual anti-school cancellation due to inclement weather campaign isn't that big a deal.

BUT, their everlasting griping about how teachers get days off at student expense goes uncontested by the highly overpaid president and executive directorship of the Nova Scotia Teachers Union. Because it's uncontested, it festers in the public mind as incontrovertible fact, and it makes doing a job that's already perceived as a glorified country club gig in modern media even tougher.

It's getting harder and harder to accept that Ms. Allen and company earn well over six figures to remain silent on this issue and fail to call the public and media to account on this, in addition to inaction and apathy on far more important issues in education besides snow days.

It's really tough to know that teachers agreed, knowing that school days lost to cancellations for inclement weather impact student learning negatively, to a longer instructional year in the 1990's to compensate for the days that might be lost within a year.

It's even harder to take when I know that Nova Scotia's teachers already teach more minutes per year than any other teachers in the country.

The arguments for banning school cancellation are idiotic- parents need their kids at schools so they can work. So let's put legal minors on buses on roads that no lesser authorities than the police and RCMP advise all drivers to stay off of for risk of severe injury or death to get to schools potentially hours late so Mom and Dad can go or not go to work that day? The fact that a student may not work on academic items for a day imperils their long term academic success and competence?

In Halifax Metro, we've had two or less days lost to inclement weather per year over the past five years, but we still have people complaining about the year we suffered more than two weeks of time lost due to Hurricane Juan and White Juan in the space of four months, and using that as justification for needing to ban school cancellations.

I appreciate that the debate is different in areas of Nova Scotia that are more rural and more days are lost annually because of road conditions, but it's disturbing that the people who rant about how this problem is crippling students so quickly forget that schools in rural areas are almost universally not located within the communities their students reside in and require students to be bused long distances each way daily- sometimes commutes are nearly an hour each way. How long would those commutes be in terrible winter conditions? Twenty years ago, schools were in communities with kids around the corner. The population has shifted dramatically in that time- fewer and fewer young families remain in rural communities, which makes consolidating rural schools a financial necessity in providing public education. However, this also means that busing becomes a logistical obstacle at times, and especially during winter months.

Most frustrating are those who posture that teachers decide to cancel school, as if the board higher ups that make the call to cancel or not cancel school survey teachers on their feeling about going or not going to work the next day as part of their decision. WE HAVE NO SAY IN THE MATTER, ONE WAY OR THE OTHER!

The decision is made by someone against the backdrop of whether it's safe to require children to walk or travel on roads to and from school. These same people have, in the past, requested that teachers able to get to school do so anyway, provided they are not risking life and safety to do so. I've done it, but I can tell you that more often than not I'm at home marking and preparing for classes for as much time as I would at school anyway. It's like people think teachers are downing hot toddies at 8 am and getting sauced and coming in hung over and late the day after a school closure... Seriously...

Anyway, here's to another winter season of complete and total radio silence on the NSTU's part while they figure out a way to pay for prime time ad space to air TV commercials where Alexis Allen kisses babies with the head of the nurses union that do NOTHING to show the public what teachers do to contribute to the health and vitality of our province. I guess NSTU members, who can't call these shows themselves because they happen to be WORKING while they're on, will just have to send emails the day after that Rick Howe won't read because it doesn't support his agenda.

And yes, I pay almost $700 per year for this quality of leadership and public representation. Think of all the snow that could clear!

OOOOHHHHH!..... Canada.....

2010-02-21T01:23:00.000-04:00

So the Canadian government, knowing we'd be hosting the games and wanting to put up the best performance ever by a Canadian Winter Olympic team, puts $CDN 120 million into amateur sport so the Canadians can "own the podium."

For this unprecedented investment, we got ZERO medals from the reigning world champion in men's 1000m short track speedskating to date. We got ZERO medals from our combined alpine ski team, several members of which grew up skiing the very mountain the Olympic races are being held on. Zero medals from figure skating, even after four years of being spoon fed Patrick "why would I do a quad jump" Chan by the media and several McDonald's commercials.

My favourite quote demonstrating the loser attitude of these athletes to date comes from Britt Janyk, female downhill skier who placed 5th or 6th, who in essence said that she was thrilled with her finish and that her gold medal was hearing the roar of the home crowd.

Frankly, as a taxpayer, I don't have an issue with funding amateur sport in our country. I do have an issue with how the vast majority of that funding goes to parts of the country that have already received tens or even hundreds of millions in infrastructure spending (Montreal, Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver), while other regions seeking to put opportunities in front of their young people get a nice pat on the head from the federal government, whether our token national politician is Liberal (Geoff Regan) or Conservative (Peter MacKay). I also have an issue with giving millions to athletes and programs that fail to produce results repeatedly.

If our ski team can't get past 2nd tier results and medal with millions of dollars in government funding above and beyond their significant corporate sponsors, then get a new ski team and some better coaching. We have world class courses across the country, access to the same gear and equipment as the top alpine teams in the world. This isn't a matter of someone not winning a gold on a $35 per week stipend and cutting them loose to starve. These are highly remunerated, well supported athletes, and they're NOT producing medals.

The athlete I have the most respect for after not winning a medal when it was clearly in her reach was Melissa Hollingsworth, female skeleton racer. When she blew a medal with a couple of obvious mistakes on her fourth of four runs, she, in TEARS, apologized to the entire country for letting a medal get away, knowing how much support she'd received from government, taxpayers, sponsors and that it was within her power to bring a medal home to validate that support. She said she felt like she let the entire country down.

Note to any Canadian athlete who whiffs or mucks up a chance to bring home a medal when it's clearly within your power to do so- watch Melissa Hollingsworth's interview and take a lesson. Please don't tell the country that shelled out hundreds of millions so you could compete on home soil that we should be satisfied with your enjoyment of hearing the crowd cheer for you to NOT win. If you're OK with that, please stop making such ineffective use of the money hardworking Canadians are putting on the table for you to train, retire and let another young Canadian who's willing to do what it takes to be the champion of their respective sport have their shot.

I'm only one person, but I have to think that there are plenty more Canadians out there tired of supporting athletes who lead the world in moral victories. I want to see Canada well represented on the podium, because we've got one of the very greatest countries in the world- that should show up when we compete in any arena...

Mount Saint Vexation University

2009-09-22T20:16:00.000-03:00

I'm taking a masters in education degree at Mount Saint Vincent University through a cohort program. In essences, it's a fast track arrangement where a part-time degree gets completed within two calendar years instead of it taking 3 or more if you register and select courses independently.

That's about where the pluses end. The list of annoyances and hassles is legend.

There's the closure of the cafeteria in the building my classes take place in by 7 pm in the evening, so that if the prof loses track of time you're stuck trying to buy junk food from perpetually sold out vending machines with change you can't get from the perpetually empty change machine with money you can't get from an ATM that's a half kilometer walk up a mountain to get to (not to mention the lady who begins to stand by the entrance and starts glaring students down at 6:45 sharp as they go in to make sure they know to get the heck out because she's not sticking around one second longer).

There's the seven different user IDs (none of which are identical to the ID code on your student ID card, which makes TOTAL sense) you need to log into the student information management portal, the library services log in that's buried 8 clicks deep in the library website and the inability to use your student ID to pay for printing on campus (gotta love those honour system donation cans next to laser printers all throughout Seton Academic Centre), and the student webmail interface where your email address has NOTHING to do with your login ID.

But what I love most of all? The parking Nazis at MSVU. The office where parking passes can be purchased is conveniently located ALL the way at the top of a massive hill a 5 minute hike from ANY parking lot close to the main academic building where my classes are held. A pass to park in lots that are 85% void of vehicles after 4:30 pm is $7... There's always the pay to park option, although by looking at the signage around the payment kiosques it would seem to the naked eye that there are 4 total spots you can use this service in that are never empty (and the webpage where parking rates are listed doesn't tell you how you can pay, but like everything else on campus, it's cash only, and if you don't have cash, you can walk 10 minutes up the mountain to the ATM, try and get change out of one of the perpetually empty change machines, and then walk 10 minutes back to the pay and display kiosque, then back to your car and THEN go to class).

The parking meters closest to the building I take classes in are routinely full when I arrive for class, so getting a pass is an enormous hassle that generally means I would be 10-15 minutes late for class to get one.

So when I walk out at night and see a sea of parking tickets on car windows that belong largely to full time teachers taking night classes, my blood boils.

The kicker? The parking tickets, issued on PRIVATE PROPERTY owned exclusively by MSVU, aren't MSVU tickets payable to the Mount- they're Halifax Regional Police tickets that ensure that you're out $32 and potentially points on your licence if you don't pay within the 4 nanosecond limit before you're summoned to court to explain why, as a full time teacher who can't leave their workplace until 55 minutes before class starts, then travel home by car pool to get the one family vehicle in time to rush to class while driving through the biggest construction project in recent memory on the highway right before the exit to get to the university and take 30 minutes to go to one building and the ATM that only dispenses $20 bills that ensure you'll get 2 kg of change from the pay and display kiosk or change machine, or then the building with the security desk where you can buy the pass, and THEN drive to the lot that isn't a 10 minute hike from the building your class is in, you didn't have a valid parking pass.

Here's hoping Alexa McDonough gets wind of the genius logistics of this university and does something about it. I can tell you I won't be attending the school again, and neither will my kids, and anyone I meet considering spending money there will get a comprehensive picture of how frustrating a place it is to go to class and get stuck with idiotic municipal tickets because you parked in a parking lot at a school where ALL offices are closed before you ever parked your car.

The Canadian university to offer a masters degree for teachers in an entirely online format will be getting heavy consideration from me for my next qualification upgrade.

Me 2, Little Hater 0

2009-09-11T23:27:00.000-03:00

5 rounds: 5 jump pull-ups, 5 pushups to the deck, 15 squats, no rest

Total time: 10:01

54 seconds slower than Wednesday, but I did it with no stops and I DID it.

Eat it little hater. You ain't got no hold on me no more.

Run tomorrow night, next workout Monday. Thanks for the cheers y'all!

Building momentum, beating the haters...

2009-09-11T20:37:00.001-03:00

One of my fave reads (or, in this case, views) is J-Smooth over at illdoctrine.com. I don't always agree with what he has to say, but the dude has serious chops as a vlogger and has created a style and voice that's unmatched (in my opinion) in the vlog world.

As you know, I've kickstarted the run/workout regime coinciding with the beginning of the 2009-2010 school year. I've set some goals, and now the trick isn't just to post them, but actually follow through. I ran twice this week, and Eric and Shahed came to give me a boost with my first crossfit workout.

The toughest part about getting in shape is building the habit of working out consistently. I don't know how you all feel about the hardest part about getting off the couch and into a healthy routine, but I find that one of my biggest enemies is the little voice in my head that keeps jawing about how pathetic I am, how overweight I've gotten or that it's cute that I'm trying but it's inevitable that I'll be back snacking instead of running in a week or two anyway, so why not take a break?

I draw a little inspiration from this:

Click To Play

So I'm not going to give in to my little hater. Yes, I weigh 260 pounds. Yes, I used to weight 212. But I didn't blimp up in one week, and I'm not going to cut it all out in one week either. It's hard work, it's going to hurt, and that's the price of getting back to where I should never have left in the first place.

So here's notice hater: I won't fade. I won't give up, and I will learn to savour the ache, because that's what tells me I'm headed in the right direction. When I feel blissfully round, I'll be worried.

Pray for grace to get this one down- my right tricep feels like it's full of razors. Let you all know how it goes!

Better late...

2009-09-07T22:49:00.000-03:00

Than not at all!

So far, I'm moving ahead with most of my goals quite nicely. Lagging notoriously behind? Scripture, running and working out.

Tonight, I threw down the gauntlet on my lardy self and went for a run.
<p><a href="http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/canada/ns/lower-sackville/889125237371213672">09/07/2009 Route</a><br/><a href="http://www.mapmyrun.com/find-run/canada/ns/lower-sackville">Find more Runs in Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia</a></p>
20 minutes and 3.1 km later (first run in 13 months), I have launched the first salvo in the war to get fit and stay that way after a decade of yo-yoing between being in awesome shape and being a paragon of chub.

Next up on the road to fitness? Wednesday night throwdown with Eric and Shahed in my basement, with the new chin up bar I fabricated out of an old pipe and two hunks of 2 x 4. I'm glad to get rolling, but MAN, is it painful to realize how far I've fallen in terms of my being in shape.

With three kids looking on, I gotta win this one. Need to set a good example to follow so I don't raise a generation of couch potatoes!

Smack talk, encouragement or comments all welcome to fuel my effort to win the battle of the bulge...

The plan for eats...

2009-09-02T20:45:00.000-03:00

So the first set of goals I have pertain to diet, and they are:

No food after 6 pm
Portion control – 1 plate per meal, 1 portion protein, carbs, veg
Vitamins daily
Water!
1 treat a week (junk food, etc)

So why these goals? Beyond writing them down and making them visible and known as a way to be accountable for them, I trusting that exploring why cements the resolve I need to make these habits instead of resolutions.

I'm 6' 2 1/2, and I weigh in the neighbourhood of 260 lbs. I didn't get as big as I am by eating right, and consequently if I don't change my eating habits, I won't get any smaller either.

No food after 6 is simple: it's rare I'm active after that time, and thus I don't need to be pumping food energy I won't use into my body just to turn into fat. Gotta not eat out of boredom!

Portion control is really only an issue at supper. Because I pack a lunch, it's contained in terms of how much I can eat. Breakfast is usually basic and nutritious before I head out to school. Supper can be a pig out just because I can. We don't eat junk or fatty stuff for supper either, but when you eat twice as much as you need to in a sitting, it doesn't matter where the calories come from- they're all going to fat. The fist sized measure was a ground rule that was really effective for me when I followed Body For Life several years ago, and because it's simple and I know it works, I'm going back to it.

Vitamins daily is about making sure my iron stays consistent (it's been low in the past) and that I'm taking vitamins to combat getting sick at school. Just a healthy habit, and they're all there in the cupboard- just need to make a point to put them in my mouth and swallow. Isn't it amazing how good things are so near yet they always seem to slide because we're lazy or unwilling to take a few small steps?

I have been drinking a lot of pop over the summer, and it's just sugar in spades. I need to stay hydrated at school because I'm on the very warm third floor, and it helps manage appetite. A stomach full of water is hard to stuff with junk (although it does mean frequent trips to the can!).

1 treat a week is acknowledgement that a treat is OK- just once in a while, and just ONE when I do. Eating junk food or goodies is cramming worthless calories in, and I just don't need it.

Any feedback on the goals so far? Other reasons these make sense? Hit me back readers. G'night!

New school year, new goals...

2009-08-31T22:47:00.001-03:00

So, it's the first teaching day of the 2009-2010 school year in the HRSB. In planning for my students and looking at end goals and how to help them arrive there successfully and meaningfully, I realize there are some destinations that I have personally that I am significantly less prepared to reach with success and meaning.

So I've put together a basic list of goals for myself for this year, most having to do with establishing quality habits that will yield results with time and consistency. Here goes:

Diet Habits

No food after 6 pm
Portion control – 1 plate per meal, 1 portion protein, carbs, veg
Vitamins daily
Water!
1 treat a week (junk food, etc)

Exercise Habits (by end of September)

Run 3x a week (mornings!)
Work out 3x a week (evenings)
Bed by 11 pm

Mind Habits:

No TV on weeknights (except Thurs, Survivor, The Office)
Read scripture daily
Memorize one scripture a month
Small group material
Read a book every two weeks
Blog once a week

School habits

Marking major assignments on two week turnaround to students
Tech team, SFC, one school team
Time at work is time to work- no surfing, rec, games at lunch, before/after school
Schedule one night a week to get out and work at a "neutral" location (during weeks with no board meeting for church)

I'm going to dig into "why" for each of these goals moving forward and update on my progress. Any comments to serve as encouragement, friendly reminders/nudges, butt-kicking, would be appreciated.

G'night!

GBP: Ted Thompson's impact and outlandish fan expectations?

2009-03-10T22:27:00.003-03:00

Ted Thompson is the general manager of the Green Bay Packers. He has served in this role for four full seasons and is heading into his fifth year. It would be fair to say that he is not well loved by many in the Packers fan base, due largely to his introversion and aversion to public attention and highly patient (some would say neglectful) approach to building a championship calibre team.

The Packers are now notorious for letting the frenzy that is opening weekend of free agency go by without wasting much time or effort to attract the most prized (and extremely pricey) free agents. Only twice has Ted Thompson (TT to the Packer faithful) made significant splashes in free agency to sign players of note: defensive tackle Ryan Pickett and cornerback Charles Woodson.

With the Packers transitioning to a 3-4 defensive alignment in their defense this offseason with the whacking of Bob Sanders et. al. and subsequent hiring of Dom Capers (noted architect of the Steelers "Blitzburgh" defense of the early 90's which leveraged the zone blitz to unprecedented effectiveness), many fans believed that signing some big name free agents was imperative to ease the pain that many teams experience when switching a defensive scheme.

When TT did not comply with the wishes of many fans this past week, his approval rating took a nosedive highly reminiscent of GW's partway through his second term as president, and now there are desperate calls for his removal and accusations that TT has failed to put any stamp on the team.

While I'm all for spirited debate, I also believe in examining and weighing the facts when deciding what side of the fire/keep TT issue, and the clamor for regime change at our GM spot would need to be founded on some pretty damning evidence for me to join in. So I did some homework about what, if any, impact TT has had on the current Packer roster. This is what I learned.

Check out http://www.packers.com/team/how_built/

Offense:

WR Donald Driver (drafted Packers, 7th round - not TT)
TE Donald Lee (signed, FA, Dolphins, TT)
LT Chad Clifton (drafted, Packers, 2nd round- not TT)
LG Darryn Collegde (drafted, Packers, 2nd Round, TT)
C Scott Wells (drafted, Packers, 7th round I think, not TT)
RG Jason Spitz (drafted, Packers, 3rd round, TT)
RT Mark Tauscher (drafted, 7th round, not TT)
WR Greg Jennings (drafted, 2nd round, TT)
QB Aaron Rodgers (drafted, 1st round, TT)
FB Korey Hall (drafted, 6th round, TT)
RB Ryan Grant (trade, TT)

Of the 4 players on offense not drafted by TT, he extended Driver and Wells.

Defense (some of this is guesswork, as we don't know precisely who is starting in the 3-4 this season)

CB Al Harris (trade, not TT)
SS Atari Bigby (FA, TT)
FS Nick Collins (draft, 2nd round, TT)
CB Charles Woodson, (FA, TT)
OLB Aaron Kampman (drafted, 5th round, not TT)
MLB Nick Barnett (drafted, 2nd round, not TT)
MLB AJ Hawk (drafted, 1st round, TT)
OLB Brandon Chillar (FA, TT), Jason Hunter (FA, TT), Brady Poppinga (drafted, 4th round, TT)
DE Johnny Jolly (drafted, 6th round, TT)
NT Ryan Pickett (FA, TT)
DE Cullen Jenkins (FA, not TT)

Kampman, Harris, Jenkins and Barnett were all extended by TT.

TT has played a primary role with over 85% of our starters in either drafting, signing or extending them.

The notion that TT's FA signings stop at the bargain bin with players like Marquand Manual and Frank Walker might be accurate in the sense that he doesn't often use FA, but it also ignores that two of our most consistent starters on defense came via big money FA signings in Pickett and Woodson.

I am still waiting for a comprehensive list of FA's that we refused to overpay for that have outperformed the deals we didn't feel they were worth signing. If anyone would like to provide me with an itemized list of names, positions, contract length and values and their production after signing, we would have grounds for a discussion, but people don't want debate- they want a lynching on purely opinionated or emotional bases.

Whether we have pro bowlers at every position drafted by TT (which seems to be the standard being applied to our team but no one else's), the roster was remade. Over 65% of our roster has TT's handprints on it, and we remain in good position going forward to make a variety of moves.

I am firmly in the camp that if we're not positioned for an extended run of contention at the end of this year that TT will not have done the job that was expected when he landed on the ground four years ago, and that we need someone to come in and add some extra punch to the sound approach taken to date.

I am also firmly in the camp that says that there's enough evidence that good things can come from this roster in the coming season that abandoning ship and whacking the GM and HC is a foolhardy thing to do given the development of players on the roster.

Which brings me to my second issue for this post: what criteria are the fans calling for Thompson's ouster using as their measuring stick, and can it be legitimately applied to rosters of teams considered to be yearly contenders?

Some have suggested that just because a player starts for the Packers doesn't necessarily make them a good or impact player in the NFL. I think if we're going to use this as a measure of quality players, I'm OK with that so long as the same measure is applied to other teams' rosters too.

There are plenty of players on playoff teams' rosters that are starting that don't necessarily translate to impact for their own team OR to being an immediate impact for other teams either.

Take the Steelers. Ryan Clark is a starter at safety for them, but he's not an impact player, and even though he may start for another team, he's not necessarily going to have greater impact on another roster either, because that's not his skill set- he's a steady, consistent player who allows other players for the Steelers to play to their strengths because they don't have to worry about him doing his job.

You can apply that same criteria to either of Pittsburgh's DE's, their entire OL, their fullback, and any of their WR's not named Holmes or Ward.

They have solid cornerbacks, but not lockdown guys. Polamalu is one of the top defenders in the league, Harrison is a passrushing force, Woodley is a fine compliment on the other side, and Farrior is steady in the middle. Hampton is a rock.

The rest of their guys are good players, not great ones.

One example I can think of right off the top of my head that is loaded with "impact" talent was last year's Cowboys. They had two safeties that have all pro talent (though neither of them ever played like it once last season), one of the most physically gifted corners in the league (Pacman), Ware on one edge killing teams, Greg Ellis posting career highs on the other edge. Ferguson is a rock in the middle.

But how many of those guys are impact players outside of that team? Maybe Ware. Ellis is effective because opposing offences can't double him AND Ware.

I guess part of my frustration with the current debate about our roster is that people seem to think that we should have a team with pro bowl candidates at every position, and there isn't a team in the league with talent like that (or, in the case of the Cowboys, it's a noncohesive unit that doesn't live up to the sum of its gifts).

I think that this team isn't dramatically flawed. I think that we need to make sure that our trenches are the strength of this team, because a lot of the other issues we have would take care of themselves if the lines were dictating the play on the field.

If our Oline is consistent and efficient, keeping Rodgers off his back and giving Ryan Grant and company a chance on most downs to make that one cut and hit it, we're a team that rushes in the top 10, even top 5. We just can't afford waiting until week 7 to get it together and deliver that kind of play.

If our Dline can gum up the opposing Oline and let out guys get one on one, I think we have personnel that can produce consistent pressure on the QB and keep Woodson and Collins near the top of the INT leaderboard.

My biggest concern isn't that we didn't pay a FOOLISH amount of money to bring in Chris Canty, because he's just one piece, and there are players than can deliver quality consistency at DE for a far more affordable price that lets us make moves in trades and resign key guys.

My biggest concern is that we use the full range of avenues available this offseason to strengthen those units and get these players ready to execute and win from week one onward. I happen to be fine with TT taking until training camp to make moves that brings in players to accomplish these goals.

It just seems like there are a ton of people who feel like it should all have been addressed in the first 72 hours of free agency, and that even if TT drafted pro bowl picks to fill three more spots on each side of the ball, many would still be complaining about the starters that WEREN'T pro bowl worthy.

In either case, I continue to watch the offseason unfold with great interest. Some teams improve dramatically through bold moves. Others improve because they leverage the talent already on their rosters through consistency with schemes and superb coaching. Here's hoping that the latter is very much the case for the Pack, and that we're treated to a couple of bold moves through the draft and trades that help vault the defense forward into the top 10.

Until next time, make mine with sauerkraut and beer mustard (my brat, that is)...

The sky is falling... (again!)

2009-03-04T22:04:00.003-04:00

So, the Green Bay Packers stunk out the joint last season, going 6-10. Of particular concern was the decline in the play of the defense and special teams. Ultimately, the slip cost Bob Sanders and everyone on the defensive coaching staff except for Assistant Head Coach/Linebackers Coach Winston Moss their jobs.

With the recent hiring of Dom Capers, one of the architects of the Pittsburgh "blitzburgh" 3-4 defense in the early 90's, the shift is on from the Packers base 4-3 defense to the 3-4, along with the requisite transition personnel wise to accommodate the move.

I'm a fairly regular poster over at the Packersnews.com message board, and I have to say that it's about time for me to walk away from the scene until we get a little closer to draft time.

We went through a pretty dry spell after packersnews.com whacked the phpBB based forum and moved to a content management system called pluck. A lot of the mainstays left altogether, and the board was overrun by newbies that pretty much either subscribed to one of two schools of thought:
1. Ted Thompson (TT in message board parlance) is a total incompetent and needs to be fired now
2. Everyone else here is an imbecile and can only understand ideas communicated in the most obtuse and insulting fashion possible

Thankfully the haters either burned out or wore out, and for a while we hit a pretty nice stride on the board with some intelligent, well informed debate with people with very disparate views about how things are being run kindling respectful connections with posters on the other side of their perspective.

And then it happened. The NFL's free agency period opened last Friday, and now we've been beset with a plethora of debbie downers who have never posted a word prior to last week flooding the board with calls for TT's head on a platter and negativity for everything Packers.

This kind of reminds me of what's happened after the first few days of free agency EVERY YEAR since Ted Thompson became GM of the team.

In some respects, I suppose the fresh crop of haters is like punxsutawney phil- a rite of the dreary winter before the post draft spring has a chance to thaw the pessimism and fans have a chance to grab hold of the hope that belongs to fans of every NFL team in late April- that the season still has to be played, and that this could be the year.

In the meantime, I guess some of us will need to endure the March doldrums of complaint about how TT didn't sign the biggest name free agents and how it all spells the eternal futility of the team to get to draft day and see what kind of additions we find to make things work and get back to contending for the Super Bowl.

Until it's April, I'll be going a little punxsutawney myself on the old packersnews.com message board until I can see my shadow in at least one ray of the sunshine of hope.

Make mine Packers!

The career leader in moral victories...

2009-02-26T20:16:00.002-04:00

...has to be the negotiating committee for the Nova Scotia Teachers Union.

Nova Scotia's teachers ratified a two year deal on Wednesday that was about as vanilla as they come. The main "victories" were:

a 2.9% raise in each of the two years of the deal
some nominal increases in a benefits package that was already one of the finest in the public sector in Nova Scotia for orthotics and treatment from chiropractors, naturopaths, homepaths, etc
the addition of 12 weeks of adoption leave for teachers adopting school aged children (prior to this deal you only got adoption leave if the children you adopted were preschool age). This is a nice add, but not a major win by any stretch given the extremely low number of adoptions of this type in Nova Scotia.
the addition of 12 weeks of topped up parental leave for a teacher who is the non-birth parent of a newborn whose spouse is not a teacher (which has the greatest implications for male teachers who represent the main source of incoome in a household whose non-teaching spouses/partners give birth)

Substitute teachers got nothing in the first year of the deal, but a $20 per day increase to the substitute flat rate to $160 per day, and a decrease in the time required to reach pay at salary scale from 31 consecutive teaching days in the same position to 21 consecutive days.

Some have opined that this represents a major victory, but they forget that less than two years ago Dennis Cochrane, the Deputy Minister of Education, made the rare admission to Nova Scotia's newspapers that substitute pay was laughable and definitely needed to be addressed if we hoped to keep motivated and capable substitutes working in our province.

The NSTU failed to include in our asking package our standing policy of three years to seek to have substitute pay tied to the bottom most rung of the salary scale to end, once and for all, the glaring gap between the gains won by "regular" teachers in negotiations and the far lesser gains won for substitutes.

Had we included this item in negotiations and won, substitute daily pay would have looked like this.

The new starting salary for a first year teacher in the new agreement is slightly more than $47,000 per year. The NSTU policy seeks to have substitutes paid the first year salary divided by either 261 days (the number of days in a school year, including weekends, holidays and professional days) or 195 days (the number of days teachers work during the school year).

At 1/195 of a first year salary, substitutes would have been paid $241 per day. At 1/261 of a first year salary, substitutes would have been paid $180 and change per day.

In New Brunswick, substitute teachers are not required to have teaching certificates, and thus, are not paid in a manner reflective of teaching certification.

In Nova Scotia, substitute teachers MUST hold a valid teaching certificate, which means that they are every bit as qualifed to teach as their full time counterparts. It also means that they have at LEAST 5 years of university education to finance, and their daily pay does not consider the huge debt loads many new graduates must incur to get teaching training in Nova Scotia, the most costly teacher training in all of Canada.

The failure of the NSTU to make tying substitute pay to the salary scale, as their policy states that the provincial economic welfare committee is to seek in negotiations, is unacceptable and weakkneed. It ensures NS substitutes maintain their position behind their counterparts across the country in terms of daily rate and time to salary scale, however improved that position may be.

The national average for time to pay at salary scale for substitute teachers is 12.5 days retroactive. NS substitutes now need 21 days consecutively without retroactive pay, despite the fact that many substitutes do the work of the regular teacher from day one. They have a legitimate case for suffrage on their hands, and one the NSTU, if it had a moral bone in its spine, would be shouting from the rooftops about.

This is a deal of teeny wins. We asked for little, and got little, and now we're acting like we won much.

This is the second contract in a row of standing still on every major issue facing teachers, particularly the issues facing early career teachers and substitutes which continue to go blatantly ignored by asking packages.

The base pay for teachers may have increased, which is good, but there's STILL no framework for long term substitute service to qualify teachers for full contract status and benefits in the manner that exists in the vast majority of comparable teaching jurisdictions across the country. If there's no way to get a term contract so that you gain a foothold in the system so you can be paid according to the new salary scale, of what real benefit is the new salary scale to the thousands of early career teachers that will never see a paycheck on salary with benefits and rehire priority?

The NSTU is ever more semblant of the NDP under Audrey McLaughlin and Alexa McDonough- the party shrank in influence and relevance on a national scale and in size in parliament under their watch, but it won more moral victories than it ever had before under their watch.

I hope Nova Scotia's teachers wake up and realize that our strategy in negotiations isn't working and make it clear in the next presidential election that change is needed. Someone needs to aim higher than where we were in 1993 when setting goals for negotiations. The rest of the country has moved far past those measures- it appears we're happy just to get back to the good old days.

What I'd say...

2009-02-26T20:02:00.002-04:00

Shout out to my man Ray for the title of this post.

So I've thought long and hard about what I should be doing to make this blog a consistent and engaging read, because posting as regularly as I have so far is hardly a recipe for retaining readership.

In thinking, I realized that you're best off blogging about things you're either passionate or knowledgeable about, so I tried to boil down the essence of this blog to a few things that fit that bill for me.

After all that thinking, here's what I feel like I know enough about to write an informed and engaging blog:

Husbanding/Parenthood
My faith journey with and through the local church
teaching
The Green Bay Packers
Canadian politics

So I have a skeleton to work with, idea platforms to jump off from. I'm not saying I'll never blog about anything other than what's on this list, but this list of 5 things will be the virtual meat and potatoes (of, for those who prefer a vegan metaphor, the tofu and eggplant sauce) of this blog.

I hope you tune in as I work to establish rhythm and identity here and chime in with your thoughts. Those comments are fuel to the blogging soul, so fire away.

The stream flows again...

Negligent blogging in the first degree...

2008-12-22T20:16:00.002-04:00

So I'm a blogger that lacks a plan, which also means that I typically lack posts as well.

I'm hoping to change that. I just finished reading a 30 days to a better blog challenge over at teach42.com (thanks for all the hard work Steve!), and I learned some good things I think will help me to be better prepared to blog more faithfully.

I know that I need to have some topics to stick to as a guideline, to give my blog some backbone and substance.

I think I would also like to try out some vlog action as well. I'm not saying I'm going to be Ze Frank or anything, but I do hope to put some stuff out into the vlogosphere worth viewing and responding to.

So, if you are actually someone who used to read my blog but has abandoned me because I'm a loosey-goosey poster, check me out over the next month. I am developing (like Blackadder always did) a cunning plan...

Go for it sister!

2008-06-10T22:18:00.002-03:00

Ever since I started running, one of the things I began doing was cheering on other runners I saw while I was out doing things, driving in my car, on the bus, etc. Regardless of how speedy or efficient they looked, whether male or female, young, old, skinny, fat, slow, fast, I took to waving and calling out "go for it brother/sister!" (depending on the gender of the runner, of course...)

Funny how habits stick with you. Years later, I'm still doing it, and now the tradition has passed on to my son, Jonah. At 4 and a half years old, he hollers out "go for it sister!" every time he sees a runner out doing their thing. (Still have to work on the gender appropriate cheer with him- even boys get the "go for it sister!"- hilarious!)

I love it. One of my fave scriptures is Hebrews 12:1-2:

Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. NKJV

That image of there being a huge crowd cheering each of us on as we pursue our faith with God always overwhelms me. I always visualized those voices calling out and urging me on, but now those voices have a human sound- Jonah in the back seat cheering on runners of every description and size as they go for it.

Thank God for kids. I know Jonah's cheers give me juice to push through my flabby cramps to make the distance, and the cheers from heaven still give me the push I need to keep going forward toward the prize.

Ricardo is going down...

2008-06-10T22:15:00.002-03:00

Last night I ran 7.5 km without pause. Tonight, I nailed a 5K tempo run. Ricardo says he doesn't need to train because "there's no quit in [him]."

He better hope there isn't. Because I'm not letting up until I cross the finish.

5K loop from home
Find more Runs in Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia

Guess I'm a betting man...

2008-06-09T23:04:00.002-03:00

So the school I teach at engages populations of students from two very different yet challenging communities. About half the students hail from North Preston, which is the largest indigenous community of black people in Canada.

I've enjoyed my year at the school, and one of the brightest spots is how I've been able to forge really positive and warm relationships with many of the students from North Preston. There are many students from this community who arrive with the expectation that things will not go well due to negative past experiences. I haven't been perfect, by any stretch, but the hard work to build a shared normal has even paid off with students who may not be the most academically engaged but have come to appreciate the structure and support I provide.

One kid (who we'll call Ricardo, for anonymity's sake) has been talking smack all year long about how he can beat me at whatever we happen to be talking about in class. Until a little while ago, that was generally basketball (which he is pretty good at), hockey or football.

But about 10 days ago he told me how old I was and that he'd cream me in a running race.

Now I haven't REALLY run in years- I go for a run every once in a while, but I'm not dedicated like I used to be when I trained for half-marathons in Montreal. But I couldn't help myself. He bet me that he could beat me straight up in a race. So I agreed to race him if I could pick the distance. He grinned and said sure.

I told him we'd run 10km the last day of school for bragging rights once and for all. He shook on it, and I have been training since.

Tonight I went for the longest run in ages, the longest since training for the demi-marathon de Montreal in 2002 with my friend Matt. I ripped off a 7.5K in just over 42 minutes at an average heartrate of 180 BPM.

Here's the route I ran:
&amp;lt;a href="http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/canada/ns/lower-sackville/112665567235"&amp;gt;7.5k loop from home&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;&amp;lt;br/&amp;gt;&amp;lt;a href="http://www.mapmyrun.com/find-run/canada/ns/lower-sackville"&amp;gt;Find more Runs in Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;

Be afraid Ricardo. Be very afraid. I'm going to run you into the ground... :) And this old man will get to call you a loser AND get back on track with running.

Who knew petty competition could be such a great motivator? LOL...

U for useless?

2008-05-17T00:04:00.008-03:00

This picture sums up just about everything wrong with the NSTU.

Once again the faces at the negotiating table lack two critical things:
1. Real qualifications as negotiators (none of these people is a lawyer, or someone who specializes in negotiating collective agreements as their sole vocation and has a proven track record of winning outstanding gains in collective bargaining)
2. Real perspective that matters to huge portions of the teaching population in Nova Scotia (old, old, old, old, old... Good mix of teaching experience and career status to ensure values and priorities are balanced, no?)

I'm not here to argue that there isn't experience in participating in negotiations at the table- some of this crew has done the dance before, and several times, at that.

But let's be honest- teachers have had their contractual backsides handed to them since 1993 when we got served, and the government of Nova Scotia was successful in dividing and conquering the membership of the NSTU.

The then sitting president concocted a deal that gave him and his close-to-retirement cronies a golden parachute achieved by selling out substitutes and early career teachers that laid the foundation for what remains an ongoing tension in values and priorities between permanent and early career teachers.

One only needs to revisit the maelstrom that was the pension debacle of 2006, where 45% of teachers who voted spoiled their ballots in protest over the single-dimensional options presented by the NSTU leadership to select from. We could choose between unpalatable option 1 or unpalatable option 2. The deal that appealed to the long term interests of early career teachers trumped the interests of teachers close to retirement, and now Nova Scotia teachers pay more of their salary towards their pension than anyone else in the province OR country.

That has translated into many people close to retirement staying on long past their eligible to retire dates out of fears that their pension will not be indexed, and may not be indexed, for years to come. Believing that they need to max out their pensions means the wave of retirements that was supposed to usher in a prolonged window of opportunity for younger teachers was much abbreviated, that mythical window called a "teaching shortage" is shut, with numbers of permanent hire positions available during the first two rounds to date down sharply compared to last year.

The last two contracts I have been in Nova Scotia for were a farce- the NSTU trumpeted yearly salary increases of 2.9% for the life of the contracts won as major victories, while refusing to put any significant items in our asking packages (let alone collective bargaining) to address the abysmal state of affairs for substitutes and early career teachers. 2.9% hasn't covered the cost of living increases for anyone in 6 years, and our braintrust at the beige fortress on Joe Howe Drive would have us believe that we've really put it to the government.

Gains by other Labour unions in NS have clearly outpaced those of teachers, and while our leadership love to stroke their overpaid egos with the notion that the NSTU is the most feared union in the province, teachers on the ground level see the lack of vision and strength in our paid staff and elected leaders and recognize that we are a ship stuck on a path for status quo, a status quo guaranteed to leave us on the perpetual short end of the stick.

If the candidates running for NSTU president (Alexis Allen, Eric Boutilier, Simon Wilkin, Jack Toomey, Russell Comeau- the latter two don't even have a website...) are any indication, that's not about to change any time soon.

The negotiations underway are pretty much guaranteed to result in farcical gains as well- the salary increases we asked for are so low that we're banking on getting 2.9% annually again. There is no discernible effort or priority to win bigger gains to offset the wage freezes of the 90's.
The bottom line is that these negotiators get paid their 6 figures and expenses whether they make gains or not.

I'd feel much better if our dues were spent on a ringer of a negotiator who got paid according to the gains won.

The other thing that bothers me is that not one of the faces on the team represents younger or early career teachers in current or recent experience.

This is troublesome because you always fall back on what you know best, and for a good portion of this team, that's what teaching was like a decade ago, either because they're professional Union workers who haven't been in a classroom or they're principals.

Equally problematic is that this aspect of union business is not being carried out with any vision to equipping and enabling a new generation to take things to a higher level. We are relying on old war horses with an incremental approach that has proven to be slower to win gains than the rate of increases in cost of living. We continue to do things the same way and expect different gains. I think someone once called that insanity...

I look to the steel nerved leadership teachers in British Columbia got from their union a few short years ago when the provincial government tried to legislate teachers' ability to represent themselves effectively in collective bargaining away and threatened wage garnishing and legal consequences.

Our leadership flinched at that rumour in 1993 and sold out its most vulnerable members to make sure those who were already entrenched and taken care of stayed that way.

In BC, the union pulled its membership together, stared the government down and told them they weren't going to have any of it, and stuck to an agenda that aggressively pursued important wins for teachers across the board, especially for supply and early career teachers.

Last time Nova Scotia's teachers were negotiating, we had a 96% strike mandate because teachers were sick of the low pay and strained working conditions, and the core of the team working on our behalf today parlayed that show of strength in 2.9% annually over 4 years with no significant changes for substitute and early career teachers, far and away the population that needs the strongest advocacy in contract negotiations, and passed it off as a big fat win.

Forgive me if I don't stand up and cheer for that same core now as they present a deal which almost ensures either status quo or gains that are so minimal as to be hardly noticeable at all. Mary Lou Donnelly has advised teachers at every turn to take whatever deal is on the table yet. Don't expect her very-close-to-retirement perspective and cohort of negotiators, many of whom are long removed from the classroom, to change and encourage teachers to stand up for what matters to them and win the gains that we should be after.

I can't believe I pay almost $700 a year for leadership like this...

The fiddle...

2008-05-10T00:24:00.006-03:00

...HAS to be Erik's new moniker after the the absolute worst play in Survivor history for how he was played like Itzhak Perlman dealing Beethoven's 9th by the four women left in the game.

How anyone gives up individual immunity with a shot at the final four after dominating all immunity challenges since Ozzie and Jason left the game is infinitesimally foolish.

Ultimately, the ice cream boy remained an ice cream boy, and one who doesn't appear to be much adept at scooping or not squishing cones. Schooled, bamboozled, burned, dominated, bluffed- none of these are too superlative to describe the successful snow job perpetrated by Natalie and Cirie.

If you're Erik, and the plain common sense of NOT giving immunity up doesn't hit you like a schoolyard bully right off the bat, doesn't the headshaking and body-shaking attempts of every single jury member to not howl out in uncontrollable laughter tip you off that what you are considering is lunacy?

Erik, despite being a walking encyclopedia of all things Survivor, loves the game, but he doesn't GET the game. You win by having a plan and executing yours better than your competitors and by selling that execution to the jury, not by shouting your errors, begging for forgiveness that he didn't need from the four bags of lies and deception that reamed him out at tribal council and giving away the only sure thing in the game.

Erik got what he came for- a chance to be awed by Survivor celebs and worship at their living sides.

On the other hand, you have to give credit to Natalie and Cirie for making an insane option seem plausible and necessary to stay in the game in the face of the reality of the immunity necklace dangling from his neck. The sheer audacity of it was impressive- that they pulled it off borders on genius, although time will temper the magnitude of the achievement, because it wasn't like they had much of an obstacle to overcome in dealing with Erik's complete inability to read anything accurately.

Here's where it gets ugly. Watch the knives come out and see everyone gun for the others now. The last challenge is always about endurance, so the odds have to favour Amanda and Parvati. Beyond that, these women could care less about relationship- they want the money, and I can guarantee that there is a jury full of people ready to set the record straight if anyone attempts to sell the notion that relationships matter- only Alexis wasn't toilet paper when it comes down to it.

Stunned. And they won't let Canadians play this game?

NST BOOOOOOOOOO!

2008-04-25T20:16:00.003-03:00

So the NSTU held its first ever presidential candidate forum via webcast last night. I applaud the effort to make the forum accessible across the province. I watched out of curiousity to see how the technology would pan out as much as interest in what candidates would present.

And what the candidates presented was pretty much what I expected, with one exception.

Alexis Allen talked about how hard she's worked, that she has taught for 30 years, yada, yada, yada. There was no vision or freshness to her ideas or presentations, which means if she's elected, we'll continue to have a union that's driven by highly overpaid teachers pretending to be lawyers and negotiators under the guide of executive staff officers (who actually have their own union and contract with the NSTU).

Jack Toomey said pretty much the same thing as Alexis. His moneyball comment came when he said we should be spending more money to communicate with the public. I was curious to know if he, as first vice president this past year, was one of the brain trust who signed off on the horribly irrelevant holiday add this year where the main message was that Mary Lou Donnelly sure knows how to kiss babies. If he thinks that's effective communication, we're in for raised dues to pay for his media campaign and a boatload of dollars wasted on tacky and pointless TV ads.

Simon Wilkin gave some focus to new teachers and getting people involved, but he didn't say anything to show me that he has any new ideas for reform to make the kind of changes that will shake our union out of complacency and into effectiveness and innovation. He wore the nicest suit and looked the best on the screen, but I'm not excited about the prospect of him driving the boat.

Eric Boutilier at least seems genuine, but there's so little of his platform that reflects anything other than the priorities of permanent teachers that I just can't see how he's the person to get the union to finally leverage its influence to deal with the biggest issues facing its most vulnerable constituents- substitutes and early career teachers. While his points are valid, who doesn't know or believe that a salary increase in our contract that matches the true cost of living increase we're all facing isn't important, or an article that ensures classes are composed with a clear, entrenched framework for funding and support?

The candidate who took it home for me was Russell Comeau. He was the candidate I knew the least about, but he hit the nail on the head a bunch of times. The most significant point he raised was the critical need to rework the language of our contract to escape the problem we have now- that we negotiate for permanent, probationary, term and substitute teachers almost separately, and consequently have gains that apply to one group but not others- he clearly laid out as a priority the need to have language that ensures gains apply to all when won so we don't have entrenched layers of inequality that grow tension and discord between different groups.

With the proposed articles of our asking package distributed recently, it's obvious that those who are leading our union are getting paid a ton and delivering little. Our asking items are mamby pamby to begin with, ensuring that we whatever we win will be less than lukewarm. The vast bulk of items requested really only impact permanent teachers, and changes proposed for subs seem significant, but only if you didn't hear the deputy minister of education scoff at how poorly paid subs are in both major newspapers earlier this year. If you can't win gains this year, when can you? If I hear the NSTU thumping its chest over these gains, I will be quick to point out the lack of substitute teacher issues in asking packages, annual council business and presence on the provincial executive have been the three biggest factors in the abysmal and near poverty stricken state of affairs for NS subs.

Here's hoping Russell can overcome the popularity contest this election has been too often, and the archaic regional politics that can ruin the best candidates chances simply because of where they live and work.

Clueless

2008-04-25T00:30:00.005-03:00

It's official. The men of Survivor Micronesia are inept. They are daft, and they will surely go down in history as the epitome of lambs to the slaughter.

Let's review. Jason believes a rudely carved stick is the immunity idol. Jason wins immunity, staving off elimination. On the next show, he GIVES UP immunity so his competitors can EAT on their "promise" not to vote for him. What saves him is some brilliant skullduggery on the part of Cirie and Parvati to whack Ozzie. So he finds the hidden immunity idol AND DOESN'T play it.

Further to this indescribable lack of the ability to read or discern what could be going on (even hear of talking to MORE THAN ONE PERSON?), his male colleagues, whilst sitting in on a "how dumb is Jason" session, where the women openly state their plan to draw out the immunity idol or send him packing, NEGLECT to tell him or leverage the suddenly vulnerable Amanda, who could well have been enticed to pay Parvati back for the knife in the ribs.

But what happens? James goes solo against Parvati. Jason votes for James, and Erik votes for Jason.

Shameful... What game are these guys playing, and when will thinking about the numbers and looking at the dynamics of the female five enter their minds and compel them to do something before they all are sitting bitterly on the jury licking their wounds?

I don't like any of the women, but they are playing cold, hard killer games right now, and that's what wins it. I just wonder if Cirie will be smart enough to engineer the whacking of Parvati and Amanda so that she takes the two female fans to the final three. She was sweet the first time around, but she's slithering now... How low can she go? I think she's prepared to tell the whole world "I whacked them all, and that's why I'm sitting here with these two fans who went along with plans but never hatched them, and you're not. Hate me, but I beat you, and you can't argue with that."

PS. Is it just me, or does Natalie look a lot like the Grinch with that buff on her head?

Brett Favre Retires...

2008-03-04T22:06:00.001-04:00

I don't intend to get too worked up about all the heresay that will fly around about how bringing in FA X/Y/Z or trading for quantity A/B/C would have kept Brett in the game.

If you read the article on Favre as SI Sportsman of the Year, you get a picture of the enormous emotional and mental toll playing pro ball has taken on Brett. If you really loved the guy and found out about him, you knew he was a regular guy who just happened to have an incredible gift to play quarterback. Mowing the lawn is a joy to the man- he's everyman.

Brett has said that getting up mentally to play the game is just too costly for him. We all know he can still play- heck, he knows it too- the point is that he's decided that he's done all he can do and playing beyond this point lacks purpose, especially if it means anything besides a second Lombardi trophy is abject failure.

I hope that fans take this time to savour one of the greatest players ever to play the game while his plays, hilights and lowlights are still fresh in our minds instead of pontificating about whose fault it is that Brett is going to enjoy life at home.

We all knew the day would come. It's here today. He gave us EVERYTHING for 17 years, and he needs us to give him his freedom and not keep tugging at him to come back or make him feel like he still needs to give us something.

All I have to say is well done Brett. You did yourself proud. You played like a legend every game (whether it was good or bad), and you became a legend. No one can talk about all time greats without mentioning your name, and no packer fan will ever forget how you transformed this team.

Enjoy the fruits of your labour as fully as you enjoyed playing the game.

The end is in sight...

2007-05-21T21:47:00.001-03:00

Wow. It's been a long time since I last posted- I even lost Survivor steam. (BTW, was that not the most riveting final tribal council ever? totally stunned by what happened there...).

In any case, I am about four days from wrapping up my final project for the John Paul II Media Institute, a short film entitled Why I Don't Go to Church. It's an interview based documentary that explores the reasons why three genXers disengaged from regular church attendance as part of their practice of faith.

For any of you that can make it, it will be screened at 7 pm on Wednesday, May 30, 2007 at the church hall at St. Thomas Aquinas (corner of Jubilee and Oxford in Halifax, NS).

One other short is scheduled to air as well.

I'm both relieved and excited. This project has been awesome, and I have learned so much about both media production and, more importantly, what it will take to reach a generation that has so little connection to the Church. The three guys who I was able to interview were amazing, and they really impacted my life and outlook on outreach.

If and when I post this to youtube or the like, I'll let you know. Otherwise, you'll have to pop by in a week and half to see it. Hope to see you there!

Episode 8: The Leaning/Wavering mind of Lisi

2007-04-12T18:51:00.000-03:00

Once again, I breathed a deep sigh of relief at the end of a second straight episode. Last week, it was out of thanks to not have to hear Rocky gripe and macho-preach at everything and everyone.

This week? The emotional roller coaster that was Lisi got sent packing. To sum up her exit from the game, we go back to the merge when Lisi was the odd survivor standing after the teams were picked and had to go to Exile Island and she had a pouting fit, threatening to leave the game then and there.

Upon her return to the all-male Ravu, Lisi somehow wiggled her way back into the good graces of Edgardo and Alex (who was particularly perturbed with her for her elitist and condescending attitude towards Dreamz and Cassandra as recently as the day before the merge). She helped whack Rocky, and then proceeded to "just be honest" and confess her wavering commitment to the game in front of the entire tribe.

Thereafter, she recanted, only to reiterate her loss of will and inconstant drive to win AGAIN. The dagger in Lisi's future? Trying to convince Alex and Edgardo ten minutes before leaving for tribal council to get rid of Dreamz in a third total about face.

What followed the spasms of decision and another Ravu loss in an immunity challenge was one of the best tribal councils in a long time. Lisi danced around the issue and tried to minimize her waffling, and Probst was just about willing to let it go when Dreamz put the question to her straight and crystallized who had to go: do you want to be here?

To a man, the rest of Ravu answered without hesitation and left Lisi looking like the wishy-washy player she was. I also loved how Dreamz put Lisi on the defensive even when she was trying to come aboard him and make him look like a quitter- his question was simple: when have you ever seen me quit or give up? Give me a specific example, and if you don't have one, then you're done talking.

Early on, I wondered if Dreamz, like Rocky, was a little too extroverted to go far in the game, but he has showed great game lately, and he has a clear picture or what's going on and what he needs to do to win, and he is willing to consider shaking the game up to get it done. Dreamz is a factor, and I won't be surprised to see him get a lot further in the game if he makes the merge and can reconnect with Cassandra and a couple other key players like Yao Man and Earl.

I wonder if this is Probst's last season with the show. I remember the look on his face when Osten quit and the absolute disdain he showed when Osten walked down the path. Now he almost takes it in stride when people talk about quitting. I was glad to see Dreamz press Lisi for the real story, because Probst should have been the guy doing that. He has hammered on other players for a lot less than Lisi's lack of desire to even play the game.

And who knew that Earl could shake his groove thang like that? He rocked the Fijian dance like a pro. You also had to take your hat off to Yao Man, who picked his spots perfectly, sitting out the dance and killing the projectile challenge. Moto just has some winning mojo right now- I think it will be tough for Ravu to break the cycle of losing- Moto just has a huge head of steam and great luck to go with it.

As for next week, I think that if there's one more immunity challenges before both tribes merge and Ravu loses, I think Dreamz might be the guy that gets whacked. Ed and Alex are rightfully worried about Dreamz jilting them after the merge to work out an allegiance with Cassandra and whoever else suits his purpose, and with Mookie disposable at any time should there be no more merge for two more tribal councils and the immunity idol in hand, Dreamz needs a big immunity win this week or a merge to stay in the game.

If it's Moto going to tribal, I hope that Earl has the good sense to get rid of Boo now. Moto is not a cohesive tribe right now, and Earl needs to shift the balance of power between the two original tribes in case of a merge. If they're silly and shortsighted, then Michelle finds a way to get the guys to vote Stacy out.

Now that Rocky and Lisi can't fill the air with silliness, I hope to see some improved gamesmanship all the way around, especially if someone can get some of the alliances to soften up in anticipation of a merge...

Until next time....

Episode 7: Rocky Gets Knocked Out

2007-03-30T20:53:00.000-03:00

I surmise I am not the only person grateful that Rocky's shtick wore too thin with the gang at Ravu. I don't know that I have ever seen a player with such a poor sense of the relational aspect of this game as the megalo-Bostonian did. I don't doubt that he was being himself- that he was not well suited to subtlety was apparent from the start. At least he was consistent... But to treat everyone as you would a lifelong friend come adopted brother out of Southie and berate everyone that moved as if you were recovering from a street war and due to fight another in minutes? Perhaps the most incongruous statement in recent Survivor history was when Rocky dressed Anthony down in tribal council for having no social skills, and then informing Anthony that he acted like a little girl and he needed to "take off his skirt a little."

Perhaps these shortcomings would have been overlooked had Rocky actually been a factor in challenges. Reminiscent of Adam last season, Rocky didn't even do anything to win even ONE challenge. He was a total O-fer, no wins, all losses, and losses he was highly unimpressive in. You can't be a mouthpiece non-stop and not deliver the goods, and Rocky was all talk (negative, insulting, sexist, macho, self-absorbed) and no action.

Lisi managed to navigate the debacle at the shuffle fairly well, though it helps to have someone like Rocky grating on everyone's nerves at all times to accomplish rebuilding your image. She did manage not to be bossy and condescending, something she was often enough at Moto to motivate Alex to consider the value of continued alliance with. I will be interested long term to see if she can survive if Ravu loses again. Dreamz has not forgotten his treatment by the old Moto, and in Mookie, Dreamz has someone who is playing the game with his eyes open.

Gotta say that Earl and Yao Man's strategy to combine for the immunity idol gives the game a new wrinkle, though it's readily apparent that Yao Man will need to play it long before Earl does. It will be interesting to see if Earl can unearth the discontent that Cassandra felt in the old Moto and leverage that to gain the swing vote if the new Moto heads to tribal soon.

The new Moto continues to impress. Clearly nowhere close to the new Ravu in physical prowess, the tribe makes up for in glue, teamwork and guts. Had to love the silenced look on Mookie's face when Yao Man made the reward challenge too close for comfort- Yao Man is a competitor, and resourceful. The ability of Moto to think a couple steps ahead may be the difference in getting to the merge ahead in numbers. Only Alex and Edgardo are really scheming for Ravu, and it will take something big for Dreamz and Mookie to break the three now.

Good challenges this week as well- loved the skull bashing immunity challenge. Did you laugh as hard as Lori and I did when Michelle went head over heels off the platform while shouting directions? Awful, I know, but it was classic slapstick...

I wonder if we're not in for a wrinkle next week. With the way this season started so slow and the tribes still so close, I have a hunch that the merge might come sooner rather than later and make the immunity idol that much more important and critical earlier in the game.

I also suspect that the merged tribe will reside at Ravu beach. I'll be disappointed to see the merge-makers living it up in luxury- it's Survivor. Let's see who can go the distance, carry their weight at a camp where nothing comes easy and still keep their wits about them.

Who's next? If it's Ravu, don't be surprised to see Mookie walk at the hands of the ex-Moto crew. If it's Moto, I hope Earl and Yao Man do the smart thing and make Boo the target with the immunity idol in play...

Episode 6: The Whiner and the Jerk

2007-03-22T07:51:00.000-03:00

OK. Thankfully, the tribes got shuffled. This was shaping up as the most lopsided season in Survivor history. Analysis of the team selections you say? For now the new Moto looks great because they won the first challenge, but at the time of the picking you had to wonder what Boo was thinking taking Michelle instead of Rocky. With Edgardo, Mookie and Alex staring from the Ravu mat, representing three of the most powerful physical players in a game where strength has dictated victory, you pick the smallest girl in the game? Michelle picks Cassandra next, and the new Ravu gets Dreamz AND Rocky.

While I think team chemistry will be better with Moto, the ex-Moto members of Ravu will not be sitting back at camp whining about how hard it is like Rocky and the Ravu Tear Droppers did. They already showed they could get food, and they showed that they will be competitive in challenges, which the old Ravu rarely was. The new Ravu won't be content to me an emaciate, emotionally beaten group.

The big question is how much of a factor is the luxury camp now for the new and much less physically competitive Moto? Does it even the field? Time will tell.

I have to say that I was praying for a second glass bottle to emerge for the new Ravu when they lost the challenge- I wanted desperately for them to need to get rid of Anthony AND Rocky.

Anthony was unbelievably timid and passive, and his constant sighing and anxiety monologues were wearing. You don't go to play Survivor with a mindset to be everyone's whipping boy or anyone's easy to pick on nerd/geek/dweeb (as he described himself). To do so is to walk around an easy target and a sure thing to get whacked early, and that's what happened.

There have been lots of players who have demonstrated emotional depth coupled with incredible guts. You can be sensitive and tough, but Anthony showed up convinced that he could only be one or the other and let past experiences dictate that it was going to be sensitive. It's a shame, because I think he could have won a lot of respect by at least holding some boundaries and being clear about things. He tried at tribal, but it was too late for him.

Rocky is an obtuse and self-righteous megalomaniac. He's not able to look in the mirror. His rant, while containing some good tips for Anthony, wandered way too far into buffoon territory (like Donald Trump has in standing up to Rosie O'Donnell- make your point- you don't need to assassinate people while you're at it. Outbullying the bully isn't right or going to win you points with anyone, except the meathead crowd.) Calling him effeminate, saying that he should take his skirt off- WOW. Anthony missed a golden opportunity to ask Rocky how many challenges he had won single handedly yet. Rocky has been a big a disappointment as anyone on Ravu for all his he-man braggadocio, and should be the last to point out weak gamesmanship relative to competition.

He's not even remotely playing the game beyond a physical competition standpoint, and the only way I can see him lasting longer in the game is if the new Ravu goes on a streak and makes it intact to the merge, or if someone wise, like Alex and Edgardo, realize that Rocky is a perfect take along and throw away alliance member at the jury stage. Everyone would understand getting rid of the guy because he's just so arrogant and abrasive, and no one would bother listening to him rant at a final tribal because everything that comes out of his mouth is a sexist, macho caricature of men on steroids and too much beer.

I don't think anyone can stomach carrying him that far in the game though, and they would have to carry him, because he's not someone who scares anyone in straight up physical competition.

One thing I would like to say about tribal council- Probst is losing his ability to point out flaws in games equitably. Piling onto Anthony and letting Rocky's rant, which CLEARLY made everyone in the tribe kick the dirt and cover their eyes, go without challenge was awful. I like that he used to point-counterpoint with clashes at council, giving to each opponent equally, but far too often over the last few seasons he seems to be happy to shape the game so that loudmouths stay around and make big stink (Adam vs. Jonathan last season comes to mind- Jonathan got it from everyone, including Probst, where Adam, save for one immunity win, was as competitive as a coconut husk). I don't like that he is becoming a bigger factor in the flow of the game- there was value in interjecting some objectivity into tribal council discussions, but it's shifted to making one player squint under the glare of the spotlight.

Finally, how dippy did Lisi look in pouting over not being chosen and getting sent to exile? Any player I have ever seen cop to giving quitting and going home serious consideration has never recovered in the game (remember nurse Stephanie last season?). She, like Rocky, is abrasive an know-it-all, and has yet to demonstrate any subtlety to her game, with her faith for victory firmly based on her impression that she and Stacey could she-pout and manipulate their ex-Moto male alliance members to do whatever she wanted. Now that she has left the impression that she could care less about the game and would be better off at home, don't be surprised to see her take the long walk without a torch very shortly.

I have to give Dreamz props for being able to do more than just hype and gripe. Where Rocky just assumes everyone will worship at his shrine, Dreamz gets that relationships are built and alliances earned and developed cooperatively. At one point I questioned if he would be able to reign in some of his extrovert tendencies to be able to navigate the finer points of the game, but he is impressing recently. He's also a guy who won't be afraid to make big moves to shake the game- he knows who he's there to play for, and that gives him a focus not many others seem to be showing right now.

Glad to see the game shifted. That was close- this season was one more boring week away from being banished to my exile island of shows not worth watching. Here's hoping the new Moto stays undefeated one more week and we get to see Rocky either dance for his dinner or go phony-Boston apey after getting blindsided by the rest of the Ravu men...

working through it...

2007-03-21T15:43:00.000-03:00

One of my biggest wrestlings in life is with the call I have felt to ministry without the call to full-time ministry. I have always identified with the model of the Apostles who went about building the church yet having a marketplace trade or skill they regularly used and practiced.

Though I was never able to articulate it, I was always perturbed with the unspoken statement at youth camps, retreats and conventions that the really anointed or gifted people were destined to go to bible college and be pastors. The only youth you saw on the stage or esteemed by leaders were those who were clearly on the track to attending bible college. It was like if you weren't like them, you didn't matter as much and that you intrinsically had less to offer in building Jesus' church.

This same feeling hits me when I see how little space there is within the church to hear and learn from people whose calling isn't to full time ministry yet have a clear anointing and impact on the church, especially within their local church community. I admit that I shake my head whenever I look at brochures or publicity for church conferences and see that the only voices and perspectives represented are paid clergy.

My Dad is a minister, and being a minister is the only thing I have ever seen him do in terms of vocation in my life. I have a profound respect for those that give their lives in full-time service, so the issue isn't that clergy don't really have something valuable to say, because they clearly do.

What I fight with is that it seems the only voices Christianity is willing to provide air time to are paid clergy. We spend all of our time hearing from the temple and next to none hearing from those building the church in the market. Check the list of speakers at your favourite conference next time and see if there are any lay people or anyone who isn't the pastor of some large church or highly visible ministry.

It leaves me in a position wondering where the room is in ministry for lay people who have a calling to speak to the church, and whose lives and testimonies are lined with riches bestowed by God to be a blessing and source of wealth to the body.

One of my Dad's peeves is how little esteem there is in the public eye for clergy people- they often rank with used car salesmen or politicians in polls when it comes to trustworthiness. I wonder, though, if we haven't created such an insular culture within the church that we have developed a worship of pastors and devalued the voice and lives of laypeople to the place that the body has forgotten to hear the voice of lay leaders and tuned out the only other voice it hears- the clergy.

One of the other consequences of the way we overburden clergy and underburden lay leaders is that clergy burn out far too often and experience much harder falls when they do fall morally or otherwise. Does Jimmy Swaggart's fall from grace do as much damage if the load of leading, shepherding and teaching within that congregation is shared according to the principal of the priesthood of all believers?

This paradigm has also contributed to the delinquency and non-engagement of the rank and file believer. Because the expectations on clergy are so steep and they do so much more than they should be and the expectations on believers who should be growing and maturing and shouldering a much more significant responsibility for the work of the church are so lax, we have generations of believers who are used to doing nothing other than showing up to be entertained on Sundays.

So, what I am seeking? Speaking engagements? A TV ministry? Not at all. Nor am I suggesting that we devalue the role of clergy- we do that at our peril. Somehow there has to come a shift within the church where clergy shift the focus of running the work of the church to empowering believers to carry out their reasonable service with the giftings and talents God has entrusted them with.

I really believe that the western church will not realize the growth and potential it has in our culture until this dynamic tension comes back into calibration. Until that time, losing clergy in churches will have a far more devastating effect than it should and legions of overfed and underengaged believers will languish in immaturity and inaction.

I am believing for a time when conferences in a city or a region will feature homegrown leaders whose life message will carry weight every bit as significant as the most known international church leader, a time where pastors can be relieved of the burden of having to make the whole church move and grow and believers at all stages of growth can mature knowing that they are critical partners in building the church and accomplishing Jesus' dream on earth and that they will find every opportunity to use their God given talents and abilities to maximum fruitfulness to contribute to a kingdom that knows no end.

I believe it's coming, and I will continue to serve and do my part in my local church in partnership with my pastor and fellow believers. I will look for opportunities to use the things God has put in my life and take up my responsbility and call so that no one else carries a weight that God intends for me to shoulder and steward. I'll be at my place on the wall until the gap is closed and the breach repaired. Looking forward to visiting your spot when it's all done...

Loads of love from Halifax...

Homework Complete

2007-03-14T12:41:00.000-03:00

This week's homework asked us to create a clip or sequence (I did both) and use and modify at least one LiveType template, to save the titles created and import the LiveType project files into the Final Cut Pro sequence for use instead of rendering out each title individually.

This project uses three different NTSC titling templates from LiveType. All fonts were changed, with some resized.

March Break! Hooray!

2007-03-10T12:12:00.000-04:00

Today is the first day of March break here in the Halifax Regional School Board. I kicked mine off with an extended Saturday morning snooze with my wife, Lori, the most fabulous woman on the face of the planet.

Next on the agenda was some online jigsaw puzzling with Jonah (found some VERY cool jigsaws of trains, which he is particularly jazzed about) before we ate some breakfast and dined with Lois, who was ravishing in her white terry sleeper and smelled like a million wearing her pink Johnson's baby lotion.

Jonah and I played a rowdy game of troll under the blanket (read: wrestling with lots of noise and tickling while pretending to be trolls...), and made bacon and eggs for the family. He's quite a chef. I used to worry that he would be keen to explore the laws of thermal dynamics being so close to the stove, but he's a tremendous listener when I show him how to stir things and where not to put our hands so we don't get burned. I like our chances in a scrambled egg making combination against any duo in the world....

I have some homework to do for my film class this afternoon, and we have a date to enjoy some tourtiere Lac St. Jean courtesy with my folks courtesy of our friends from Lennoxville, the Cheals, this evening.

I am looking forward to a visit with my sister in Summerside for a couple of days to get out of town and spend some time with her. Rumor has it that there is a large John Deere dealership not too far from her house, so a visit of the showroom is a very real possibility for Jonah and I....

Other than that, I'm hoping to sleep in once (ok, maybe twice), catch a movie and spend some time in the editing suite at JP2MI doing some Final Cut Pro tutorials. Mostly, I'm just excited to be at home with my wife and kids and enjoy every minute.

How do you March break at your house? If you've had yours already, hope it was awesome. If you haven't, hope you've planned for some R&R and quality time with the ones you love.

No Survivor next week, so depending on what happens, I might have some neat pics to share instead.

Gotta figure out how to get this blog on track and give it some form and rhythm so it's not so boom or bust. Any ideas the blog gallery has about resources to help build a better blog would be appreciated.

Check you all later.

Episo.....Snore....

2007-03-09T22:06:00.000-04:00

Somebody please wake me when this season gets interesting. Ravu is awash in loser-vibes- they are possible the very worst tribe in all of Survivor history. They don't do anything well- physically they can't compete, and mentally they are about as shadow cast on a wall 50 feet away from a candle.

I thought maybe there might be some compelling moments what with the faceoff between Dreamz and Rocky being included in the upcoming hilites last week, but even that was a total wash.

I thought Adam was a total flub last season, but at least he won one challenge. Ravu just isn't even in the game.

HOPEFULLY with the scenes from the next episode including a tribe shake up things will get moving and we'll see some real action in the game. Watching so far has been like watching grist go through the mill as far as excitement goes.

That said, I think Alex and Edgardo are the two brightest minds in the game to date. The Moto woman-twins are just obnoxious, and I have never seen a tribe so arrogant follow a plan through its execution (see the demise of the 5 women vs. Chris a few seasons back- they had it in the bag, and then they got paranoid and forget about the man in the game...). Not that I believe in karma, but the law of sowing and reaping is immutable- those two rude and exclusionary women will pay the price for mistreating Dreamz and Cassandra AND for ignoring Alex' counsel that it was far too early in the game to act like it was all over.

Can't wait for the merge. If it doesn't get interesting soon, I might have to watch the hypefest known as Grey's Anatomy instead. yikes....

Episode 4: Breaking the Cardinal Rule

2007-03-02T08:23:00.000-04:00

Stunned. That's what I am about Moto's decision to forego immunity and keep the fatcat luxury digs over keeping the hammer and forcing Ravu to jettison yet another member.

Mark my words- this is HUGE shift in the momentum of the game, because despite being undefeated, Moto stands equal with Ravu now. Moto needs to look over its shoulder and see that the difference between winning and losing the last challenge was one or two fortuitous key selections on Michelle's part for Ravu.

With Gary gone and Lilliana, clearly the most physical woman for Moto, ousted bitterly and secretively, Moto is about to enter the next phase of the game a divided tribe. Whoever didn't know about Lilliana going will be on the warpath to break up the five who did at first chance, and don't think that Alex won't be looking for reasons to harpoon members of his alliance given their awful decision making in getting rid of her.

I have never seen a tribe OPT to vote someone out and live to tell about it in all the years of watching this game. In the team section of this game, numbers are everything, and you NEVER let up- you mow through the competition and keep the hammer so that when you hit the merge you have the luxury of sticking to the stragglers or wooing people desperate for some safety in numbers.

Ravu isn't losing because they're hungry- they're losing because their team is weak. Rocky is one rant from going supernova, and you saw the beginnings of his exit in the way Earl talked about Anthony being a good guy and wondering how he could keep him around. Ravu won't tolerate Rocky's sanctimonious speeches about mailing it in if he continues to be hard on every and deliver next to nothing in challenges.

For Moto not to see how close they are to putting the nail in Ravu's coffin so that they can sleep in a nice bed is folly, and now they are out Gary (who would have been simple to vote off at any time because he posed no physical threat at all and showed no drive to navigate the interpersonal politics that are part of the game) and stuck with Cassandra (who is mainly a candidate to sit out one of every two challenges so long as there was a numbers advantage) and Lisi, who will drive the team to distraction with her controlling tendencies with an explosion about what bothers her (because just about everything does, if you listen to her asides).

If I am Ravu, I am totally re-energized by the shift in the game. Our tribe barely lost the last challenge, which is reason for optimism, because only two challenges ago, we were getting HAMMERED every time we competeced.

All you have to do is look at last season and the way that Aitu, small and badly outnumbered, found some unity and cohesion and stuck it to Raro, dominating the rest the way to a final three of all Aitu members.

Momentum is key- if Ravu can steal a win and send Moto reeling, this game could look very different in two weeks.

On another note, you have to love the message in a bottle. Twice it has been the catalyst for huge shifts in the momentum of the game. For Raro, it cost them TWO members. For Moto, it cost them one and brought things back to even. Nice touch by the show's planners to add wrinkles season after season. I can tell you this- given the detriment the bottle has been to the two tribes that have won it in challenges so far, I might be tempted to tank a challenge where winning meant getting it.... (Then again, that would be the season the bottle gives the winning tribe the right to vote off someone from the opposing tribe instead of the tribe voting off one of its own. Are you reading this Probst? You can have that one for free....)

Looking forward to the Rocky vs. Dreamz tilt next week. Have to admit I'm hoping the cheerleading coach hands it to the former Bostonian Balboa wanna be. I'm a little weary of the whiny bartender...

Episode 3: Going downhill fast....

2007-02-23T08:15:00.000-04:00

Wow. Has any tribe been this bad at challenges since the Andrew Savage led Morgan tribe back in Survivor Pearl Islands? Ravu just doesn't have a game face.

The slip and slide challenge was a joke- complete domination by Moto, and then the immunity challenge was embarrassing. This is a tribe headed nowhere fast, and if they don't get it together and win something, this could be the first tribe eradicated and the first survivor where a merge isn't even necessary...

A couple of things I did like about the show. Hats off to Ravu for taking into account the possibility of the immunity idol when figuring out how to vote this time around. Good thinking overall- make your priorities and vote decision ahead of time to make sure you get one of your top two stragglers off.

Secondly, hats off to Mookie for voicing what everyone else was thinking about Anthony's abysmal effort and showing in the eating challenge against Gary. When players dominate they get credit. When they don't, everyone dances and talks about how valuable they are, when the truth is that they are usually killing the tribe. Anthony isn't doing anything to help the tribe, and you have to be accountable for what you do or don't deliver. I at least give Sylvia credit for owning her awful performance in the slip and slide and making that clear to Ravu.

Anthony's snipe about not questioning someone's will to win was weak and petty. When you get annihilated in an eating challenge (as in you didn't swallow ANYTHING by the time your competitor finished their plate), be prepared for questions about your guts and desire... If Ravu tanks it again, look for Anthony, who apparently gets emotional and paranoid next episode, to walk the long trail by himself at the end of tribal next week.

Here's hoping we see more head-to-head competition. If we're going to see more puzzles, I hope we see them where you have to beat someone one-on-one to help your tribe win. At least there would be high drama with puzzles....

Jesus has a big hand...

2007-02-16T20:32:00.000-04:00

One of the things I pray over my son every night is that God holds his life in His hand, and sends big angels to watch over him all through the night to keep him safe.

The other day we were driving in the car on our way to do some errand as a family rocking out to a little Raffi when Jonah pipes up and says "Mommy?" (which is not an uncommon precursor to any number of discussion starters).

Turning down the music to hear what he has to say, Lori kindly asks what's on his mind, to which Jonah says: "Mommy, Jesus has a big hand." Not quite sure that she heard him correctly, Lori asked him to say it again and he did. Still not making it out, I filled her in, and then Jonah continued to tell her that Jesus keeps him safe in His big hand.

What was amazing about Jonah saying all of this was the smile on his face and the calm with which he said it- on some really important level to him, the reality of Jesus' big hands holding him tight and keeping him safe really mattered. It reminded me never to underestimate the ability of little people to understand really profound spiritual things.

So this past Monday morning, when I sat in the emergency room of the Cobequid Communicty Health Centre hearing that the results of the catscan and EKG done to figure out if I had either fractured my skull or concussed my brain after fainting in my bathroom twice within 3 minutes and smashing my head on the corner of the counter and the lip of the bathtub respectively were BOTH negative for anything signficant, I closed my eyes and thanked God for his protection. And quietly, Jonah's words came back to me in a smile I enjoyed with my eyes closed.

28 years his senior (and well over 200 pounds heavier), the reality of Jesus big hands holding me and keeping me safe meant every bit as much to me on that gurney as it did to Jonah in the back of the family Hyundai... For a minute I was tempted to worry about how badly I could have been hurt, but then I realized that God does watch over me, and that my life was spared undue harm.

David had it right:
Psalm 63 (New Living Translation)

1 O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water. 2 I have seen you in your sanctuary and gazed upon your power and glory.

3 Your unfailing love is better to me than life itself; how I praise you! 4 I will honor you as long as I live, lifting up my hands to you in prayer. 5 You satisfy me more than the richest of foods. I will praise you with songs of joy. 6 I lie awake thinking of you, meditating on you through the night.

7 I think how much you have helped me; I sing for joy in the shadow of your protecting wings. 8 I follow close behind you; your strong right hand holds me securely.

Love that big hand, Jesus...

Then there were 17...

2007-02-15T22:20:00.000-04:00

And we learn once again that you must be in control of yourself at all times. Why is Erica sitting at home while Sylvia continues to be loathed at Ravu? Because it's all about impressions, and early in the game when you haven't built enough relationships to leverage them in the game, you better not give people pause to think of you at the top of their who-do-I-vote-off-next list.

Freaking out at everyone in a challenge where the team needed to work together to win is just the ammunition people need to change their minds. It continues to amaze me how poorly people understand the stages of the game and how it changes.

On a different note, I loved that Anthony worked with Rita to try and make the vote a little more interesting. I wished for players this season that would force the game to be played, and it looks like Anthony is at the head of the pack that is prepared to consider alternatives to the boring everyone-needs-to-vote-the-same ideology that leaves too many people on the outside too early. Looking forward to seeing some more of that flavour as the game goes along.

20...uhhh...less than 20 questions....

2007-01-25T18:50:00.000-04:00

One of my daily blog reads responded to this set of questions from one of her daily blog reads and challenged anyone taking in her blog to pony up and do likewise. So I'm bringing it Lori B- here goes (italics mine):

1. What’s the most fun work you’ve ever done, and why? (Two sentences max)

My last year of teaching grade 2 at McLearon in P-A-T, QC. I grew so much as a teacher that year, tried so many new things with my students and shared in so many of their successes. Also had a student teacher that year- really enjoyed that dynamic and think we helped each other develop as teachers.

2. Name one thing you did in the past that you no longer do but wish you did? (One sentence max)

Split decision- draw/create art, and write poetry.

3. Name one thing you’ve always wanted to do but keep putting it off? (One sentence max)

Take a trip to Poland and Ukraine with my Dad and Gido to experience the roots of our family with the layers of generations together....

4. What two things would you most like to learn or be better at, and why? (Two sentences max)

Be more consistent in the little things in life, like prayer and devotions and working out/running, and how to coach football. The consistency in little things makes such a huge difference in the rest of your life, and coaching football because I love the game so much and enjoy connecting with young people.

5. If you could take a class/workshop/apprentice from anyone in the world living or dead, who would it, be and what would you hope to learn? (Two more sentences, max)

I would love to have been part of Jesus' group of 12 disciples. He was such an amazing teacher and leader, and to be able to have that imprint on your life- look at what the 11 accomplished for God...

6. What three words might your best friends or family use to describe you?

Loving, reliable, passionate

7. Now list two more words you wish they described you as…

Humble, patient

8. What are your top three passions? (can be current or past, work, hobbies, or causes– three sentences max)

Becoming a disciplemaker, being a great husband and dad, learning about and using technology. A disciplemaker, because that's the greatest legacy anyone leaves- to walk with people and help them grow in God with the help of Holy Spirit, a great husband/dad because I'm the only one my wife and children will ever have, and technology because it's always changing and developing- it's a constant challenge to learn all the new things it can do and accomplish.

9. Write–and answer–one more question that YOU would ask someone (with answer in three sentences max)

What would you say is the turning point of your life- the moment that helped start you on the road to becoming who/what you are right now?

It was my last year of university, and I had a crisis of faith. I either had to turn my back on what I was raised with or dig in and find out if it was real for me- so I dug, and I found an overwhelming love that really changed my heart. Since then, things seem much simpler and clearer, and I have a focus that never wavers, no matter what's going on...

Ready... Set...Start?

2007-01-19T15:47:00.000-04:00

With the crush of recent changes/additions slowing, life is regathering in a new rhythm for me- normal is re-establishing itself, albeit in a form somewhat different than before (which is OK- what's normal always shifts in life. You gotta flow with it).

What's not changing are the things that have been in the back of my mind for a while that I know are so important yet I never seem to get down to doing and being consistent in. Maybe it's the New Year vibe that's stirring this, but I also recognize the quiet prompting of God in it. He loves me too much to let me stay the same and miss out on change and growth that will make me more like him.

So the question is, how do you start to start doing the things you've always had trouble starting to do? Things like establishing some much needed consistency in devotional time and spending time reading scripture, like getting on track with some kind of physical exercise and sticking with it, like dusting off those dreams that light your soul up and actually doing something about them...

And no, I don' t have the answers. That's why I'm asking- I'm all ears. Any advice from the blog reading public would be greatly appreciated. Hit me back people! Chat later...

What heaven must sound like...

2007-01-14T22:28:00.000-04:00

If you haven't heard this story yet, you are missing an incredible one. The boy pictured, Shawn Hornbeck, now 15 years old, was kidnapped over four years ago when he was 11. He was recovered by police this weekend when they tracked down another boy, Ben Ownby, (completed unrelated to this one) who was abducted this week and found both of them in the home of their common abductor.

He was found in a town less than an hour away from his real home.

Watching the press conference live on CNN, the parable of the lost sheep hit me like a truck. The joy on the faces of Shawn, his mom Pam and stepdad Craig and the rest of his family was something only those who know how much Shawn is worth and loved can understand. I realized that this was a picture of the rejoicing there is in heaven when any person who turns their hearts to God through faith in Jesus Christ does so, each and every time.

The other thing that hit me was that God wants to "find" people everywhere, including those in immediate proximity to me and to you. Making sure that we support those that feel called to reach people in far off places is critical to be sure, yet I was challenged again with the call to be light and salt to those that I touch every day with my life.

Help me Jesus to "find" lots of people and play a part in their homecomings with the help and power of Holy Spirit....

Deja wow...

2007-01-14T22:12:00.000-04:00

Sometimes you hear things you say all the time said or sung by other people and it's really amazing to hear something you treasure through the hearts or voices of another person.

Each night, Jonah and I say prayers together, and we never fail to give thanks to God for Jesus and his amazing love towards us, for showing us how to live, love and change the world, for paying for our healing with the harm he suffered to his body, for making a way for us to be forgiven so we can be God's friends in such a way that no human relationship can compare and for the hope we have of salvation, of spending eternity with God in heaven to celebrate him and his goodness. It's the greatest treasure we have, and at the risk of being monotonous, I know it's so important that we never lose sight of the mercy and love of Jesus Christ that saves and transforms us every day.

So when I heard Paul Baloche's tune Because of Your Love the other day, it was like hearing something dear to my heart put to music. Not only is it a fun tune to rock out to, but I wept through the song about 12 times on repeat as I recounted the goodness of God in my life and remembered the love that changed my life. This one is definitely going on the "ride to work" CD to start my day with three times a week....

Check out Paul's website at www.leadworship.com. For those that lead worship, you can download the chord charts and lead sheets for free.

Goodness you can touch and feel...

2007-01-14T00:12:00.000-04:00

Today I am awash in the afterglow of the birth of my second baby and my first daughter. Lois Janine was born yesterday at about 6:10 pm in the IWK Grace Health Centre in Halifax, NS. She weighed 8lbs6oz, and she is beautiful like nothing else I have ever seen. (more pics here)

<=== Feast your eyes...

I wrote last time about how careful we need to be about letting our faith get hard to just how incredible God is and how limitless his ability to work things out is.

I don't know how to describe how overwhelming it is for me right now. Everything I see and experience in my life- when I walk in the front door of the house I really was starting to believe I was never going to have, when I kiss my wife, the woman I once almost believed I wasn't ever going to find, when I lift up and hug my son, who I once almost believed would never come and leave our family name to evaporate, when I hold this baby girl who is just killing me with how beautiful she is- seems like a dream that is almost too good to be true.

When I think about how little faith I have had for some of these things, I am blindsided with the reality that God really DOES love me more than I know, that he really DOES have a future and a hope for my life and that no matter what life looks like in the natural, he's reaching and working and putting every resource he has to use in causing favour to flow into my life and setting blessings in motion that will chase me down like the hounds of heaven. It really is about how good he is, because it's sure not about how stout or unwavering my faith is...

When my Grandpa lived here in Halifax, his favourite worship song was Jonathan Barnett's rendition of Psalm 34. I have learned to live the first words of that song- I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

Dating back ten years, things have been really hard, either with wrestling with my identity and calling in Christ, or with remaining faithful to both despite not having full-time work and having to postpone dreams because of finances and logistics. I have learned to carve out a place of rest and refreshing in the hard places of life so that my heart remained soft and sweet. Those lessons are gold to me, and I will cherish them for my whole life.

What I am finding now is that they leave me woefully unprepared for how to deal with a season of plenty. My ability to worship from a real heart of love in the dry times has been well-developed after nearly a decade. Now I feel like a total novice- I don't know what to do with myself because it's like being punch-drunk after getting one blessing-hook after another to the spirit man.

In any case, I am thankful that my heart's reaction hasn't been to scramble for the comfort of the season I am used to, but to take a deep breath and let myself get whirled away. It feels strange, but I feel new again, and I'm just so thankful to God for it all. What an amazing feeling to be able to love with a heart in two places and be just as real in both of them.

I'm full and running over God, and it's only because of your goodness. Thanks for everything, and for my baby girl. Hugging her is like grabbing hold of your heart for me- I plan on doing that as much as possible...

Life flies....

2007-01-10T22:48:00.000-04:00

Wow. Over a month since my last entry, and so much has happened. We have completed the renovations on our new home (photos to come, when I get a second to inhale AND exhale..), packed, moved and unpacked and made a house a home.

As I write, Lori is in the early stages of delivery, and if our baby doesn't come forth on its own in the next 24 hours, our doctor has scheduled Lori to be induced on Friday.

I have been amazed in the last few weeks at the light speed God can move with in lives. Dreams that ripen for years that seem like lifetimes came together and full fruition for Lori and I in a matter of weeks, and it's been a real eye opener for me to realize that it's easy to slip into a complacent faith when you're contending for dreams and prayers in the long run and forget that nothing really is impossible with God or for God, and that it's so critical that we find space to dwell on who God is and connect with him so that we don't lose sight of his awesome power or incredible heart of love for us.

For all those who have prayed with us, chalk up a notch in the prayers answered column, do a little victory dance and stick it to the devil for a moment and celebrate God and his goodness. Then, if you don't mind, please stand with us for a safe and healthy delivery for Lori and baby by Friday...

Believe me- with a newborn as inspiration and subject of photographs, I can't go a month between blog entries. Stand by.... :)

Nice play...

2006-12-15T08:12:00.000-04:00

Last week I wondered about the Aitu core- Jonathan was a strange choice to send packing, and the rationale that appeasing the Raro leftovers by sending Jonathan home before them would earn votes on the jury was pretty dodgy to me.

This week I wondered if Ozzy was going to do something rash and whack one of the Aitu core to build some brownie points with Parvati. It's about this time in the game that the pecking order crystallizes and people start to realize what they have let unfold: the rest of Aitu, who really survived weeks of must win immunity challenges to lessen the huge numbers gap that had opened on the back of Ozzy's physical domination in the water, is now seeing that Ozzy's strength is now their greatest enemy.

No one is touching the guy in immunity challenges. It's not even close, and the only guy who has a remote shot at it is Yul, and for the rest of Aitu, that's a worse scenario because he would have both the immunity idol AND necklace, making everyone left game.

Momentarily I worried that Ozzy would let his foot off the gas and depart from the gameplan of the Aitu 4 to the final 4, but he was sharp. Don't stick your teammates in the eye before the game turns to an every person for themselves free for all where the only immunity that matters is the kind you have been kicking everyone's butt for for weeks.

If Yul makes the final two, which is highly doubtful given his overt leadership and deal-brokering, he will have a hard time overcoming the perception that he didn't manipulate the game like crazy, and an even harder time rebutting that view because he dislikes argument or controversy so much. If he goes to the final two with someone who is collected in their thoughts and can make a persuasive argument and pour gas on the Yul's fire, he would face a tough time winning.

Adam, once again, turns in an AWFUL showing in the immunity challenge. He won ONE, and despite being viewed as a physical threat, he has been useless, like an ice machine in the arctic. No strategy, no physical prowess, no game at all.

Sunday is the finale. My prediction? Ozzy, for the sole reason that his focus has been singular since the game started, and no one has remotely touched him in challenges in a long time. He dominates his way to the final two and takes Sundra or Becky and argues that no one has dominated the game physically like he has or carried a tribe like he has, and that Sundra or Becky were along on his coat tail and survived because he brought challenges and fish home in fistfulls. He's also lucid enough to make the tough decisions, and will whack Yul at the first possible opportunity and sidestep the emotional pitfalls the rest of Aitu wil conflict themselves with about voting each other out.

And Probst will leave the last Tribal Council in the Cook Islands on a giant leatherback turtle and ride it all the way to Burbank....

Home rev.2.01

2006-12-14T07:18:00.000-04:00

Yep. We're homeowners! Lori and I closed our first home on December 11, 2006. My blog neglect can be traced directly to heading to our new place right after school daily to work on renovating the place.

This is the culmination of 5 long years in Halifax waiting and persisting. It's a dream come true, and getting the house is a reminder that we need to be careful not to put our dreams on such high pedestals, as in "when I get my first home, I'll be ecstatic. I can die happy." Not that I've ever said or thought that, but the reality of my dream of having a place for Lori, Jonah and Wozney #4 (due in 4 weeks or less) isn't all roses and giggles.

There's gobs of old wallpaper to scrape and steam off, loads of painting to do and two days worth of flooring to lay.

I'm really thankful that God has helped me to treat events as milestones on a journey instead of destinations. I love our new place, and it's going to look awesome when we're done all the stuff we want to do, but at the same time it's just a house. It can burn down or blow up or blow over or ANYTHING that can happen to a building.

The really important part about it is the home we build inside it and the light we let shine through it so that people see and feel Jesus when they visit.

Hope you can stop by sometime and enjoy God's faithfulness to us. (well, maybe AFTER we're done renovating...and having the baby...).

with AND for...

2006-12-06T22:00:00.000-04:00

Loving the arrangement of Jesus Paid It All on the new Passion CD. Got me thinking about what I believe God thinks about me.

There was a time in my life where I believed God was always with me- I knew he was there no matter what, but I didn't believe that he was for me. That was a lonely time, not because God wasn't for me, but I limited God- I never expected anything from him, and I closed doors in my life that God really wanted to break through for me in.

I come to see more and more all the time that God is totally for me. He's not just there, but in every circumstance and situation, he's contending for me, for the fullness of his purpose and best for my life, and I am growing in my trust in him that whether I feel it or not he's my biggest fan and backer.

He laid it all on the line for me, and he still does that everyday. Life is a lot easier, even when it feels impossible, walking in that knowledge- I can make it and overcome no matter what because he's for me. If you didn't know, he's totally FOR you too. Let that sink in...

Holy traffic Batman....

2006-12-05T22:58:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was our first snowfall of the season here in Halifax. We had an appointment with our lawyer yesterday at 4pm about the closing of our home next Monday. Getting there was no problem at all (there in less than 21 minutes, even with the snowy rotten roads).

Getting home? Another matter altogether. That same drive took over 3 hours and 35 minutes (even more if you count the 50 minutes we took to get out of traffic and eat dinner at East Side Mario's). At one point, we sat in the same spot for over 40 minutes and didn't move an inch....

I have driven in Montreal, Toronto and Boston, and I have never been in traffic for that long in either of those cities.

Thank God it's over, we got home safe and Halifax is due to return to its balmy ways soon. Safe driving all!

PS. Need snow tires? We got a great deal and fab service from the Halifax guys. Highly recommend them!

photo copyright Halifax Herald Ltd/Peter Parsons, Staff Photographer, 2006

Incredible spouse outraged by muffin-snub....

2006-12-01T00:35:00.000-04:00

My wife, Lori, asked me to post her comments on my muffin blog that were cut short due to a 300 character limit on comments. Being the dutiful husband, I will oblige. Here they are:

I tried to reply to your blog but was censored to a limit of 300 characters.. and you know I've never spoken using less than 300 characters in my life so I am sending this to you via email so I can be free to express myself!!! You have my permission to post this if you so chose:) Love you lots.

"I feel compelled to point out the egregious error you made whilst listing your top muffins. Whilst the carrot-oatmeal-berry-whole wheat-healthy-applesauce replacement tactics are a big part of our muffin regime, it is with great moral outrage that I say “WHAT ABOUT BANANA CHOCOLATE CHIP!!!!!?”. I realize sweetheart that I tend to take more than my fair share so you don't get to enjoy them as much… but come on now… you know you love them! I feel you are perhaps ashamed of your white flour-chocolate-infused tasty treat and thus neglected to mention it…so I will air our dirty laundry in honor of the great banana chocolate chip muffin. We eat them... and we love them."

Moral outrage duly noted. I wish only to add this in response to these passionate thoughts:
1. There is no partiality in my list due to hidden shame about liking banana chocolate chip (although I suppose my recipe adaptions do smack a little nutritionally-elite). I actually PREFER the recipes I listed ahead of banana chocolate chip, mainly because I find them a little cakey (especially the recipe we use which uses a lot of butter). BUT, you are right that I do like them- just not quite enough to make my top 5.
2. When I bake the banana chocolate chip muffin, it is with 50% whole wheat flour. I can't replace the butter, because I find banana muffins burn easily without enough oil/fat in the mixture. So they are buttery, to be sure, but they ARE 50% whole wheat, in keeping with my equal opportunity approach to flour mixing.
3. My only beef over the disproportionate number of banana chocolate chip muffins consumed by you has to do with there sometimes being none left to defrost in the morning to eat on the way to work. Other than that, I have no problems with the general enjoyment of muffins, banana chocolate chip or otherwise.
4. If the top 5 muffin list were composed using a democratic process where all family members' votes were weighted equally, I agree that the banana chocolate chip would trump some of my faves.

Whew. Muffins debated, democracy and free speech defended and my wife listened to and affirmed. :) A blog to be proud of! lol

That said, I guess I should pencil in a banana chocolate chip muffin baking session sometime soon.... :) I love you too Lori- you're the best. I'd share my muffins with you anyday....

THAT'S how you play the game...

2006-11-30T21:57:00.000-04:00

FINALLY someone understands how to play the game. After all the name-calling and mudslinging, kudos to the Aitu core for recognizing an opportunity to put a nail in the coffin of people you know will get rid of you at the drop of the hat.

Adam, Parvati and Candice neither saw the handwriting on the wall after Nate went home, nor saw that Jonathan, however much they dislike him, is a far more convenient and disposable carry-along for the Aitu core the longer the game goes. They failed to see that Aitu realizes that Jonathan is someone that the Aitu core can instantly polarize against and vote off at their convenience, and that no matter what Aitu does to the remaining Raro members and no matter what assurances Raro members give out that they will vote for Yul if Jonathan goes before they do, the Raro tribe members on the jury are going to have to pick between people on a tribe that just got it done and eradicated their huge numerical advantage, and, if Jonathan goes to the final two, a guy who everyone has reason to dislike and the number 1 player everyone is willing to throw over the side.

It never ceases to amaze me how people sprout righteous indignation in this game. Candice's diatribe about how arrogant Jonathan was and how elitist the Aitu core was for eating without them was classic tunnel vision. How quickly the Raro three forgot the times where their entire strategy was to gloat about superior numbers, and how they coasted through the first days after the merge secure in the woefully uniformed bliss that they could vote out Yul at will and dictate the terms of the game.

In addition, Adam might be the most over-estimated physical threat to play the game. Raro kept him because they felt he was a physical asset needed to win challenges, and he was useless in every one until he won the immunity challenge tonight. Does anyone remember the preaching during the compass challenge where the only guy who dug worth his salt was Jonathan and Adam and Candice waltzed and patty-caked the beach like they were guaranteed a victory? His entire strategy has been to cuddle the chesty/cutesy girls and let other players carry the workload for the tribe.

The Aitu core get the essence of the game- it's about winning and furthering your chance to win, and you do what it takes to accomplish that. What is Raro going to do from the jury- base their votes on who they like the best? Aitu gets that the jury, however much they dislike the players in the final two always look at who played the game the hardest. I refer to Brian, winner of survivor Thailand, who NO ONE on the jury liked. But he won in a landslide.

You put the hammer down and play your game. You don't win by caring about the hurt feelings of a tribe that based its whole game on assuming numbers would take them to the end. They have been resilient and blocked out the other team's strategy in getting to where they are, and they are staying true to that.

On a lighter note, gotta love Jonathan going for everything he could in the auction. No money left, three items won, and a pile of players left wishing they'd done the same. Never leave the auction with money in your pocket...Becky's play to send Candice and take her money was AWESOME. The irony was killer- Candice could have flopped instead of Jonathan and been a good guy for Aitu, but because she's too busy smooching Adam and trying to look strong, and Aitu just kept sticking it to her. Can't wait to hear Candice erupt with bitterness at the final tribal council for the four trips to exile- that should be some fun TV....

Until next week....

PS- didn't you love Probst's barb to Candice that if it was really love she'd be wearing the immunity necklace? What a pot-stirrer....

Mmmmmmm...muffins...

2006-11-29T07:29:00.000-04:00

Increasingly I am carpooling to work with teacher pals so that Lori has the car to both transport herself around in the late stages of pregnancy and to make getting Jonah to preschool easier a couple mornings a week.

That means I have to get up early, and getting up earlier than I did when I drove to school means that I REALLY don't eat breakfast now. That is, unless I have something in the freezer to thaw and munch on my way to or when I get to school.

That something is muffins. I love baking them, and I love eating them. I have a few recipes that are standards that I make large batches of (Texas sized, of course) and keep on hand in the freezer. So, in the spirit of my Starbucks post not so long ago, I would like to offer my top muffin recipes:
1. Carrot Raisin muffins
Note: I always replace the oil with unsweetened applesauce in this recipe, and for a real walk on the wild side, substitute half the carrot with shredded zucchini. You MUST soak the raisins with this one. Always moist, always good. 5 m's out of 5.
2a. Cornmeal muffins with blueberries
This reminds me of johnnycake with my best friends Gary and Jackie, who are West Indian. Love the texture and colour of these muffins. Gotta try it- good fibre in this one too. 4.5 m's out of 5.
2b. Oatmeal muffins with blueberries, raspberries or cranberries
RIGHT ON. Oatmeal AND berries. I adapt this recipe- you guessed it. Substitute applesauce for oil and buttermilk for milk. I use a cup of berries to each cup of buttermilk, though it's not called for. Also, a tablespoon of cinnamon and a dash of vanilla. 4.5 m's out of 5 (though it's climbing in my book).
4. Applesauce Oat Muffins
This recipe is great, although a little plain. I love that it uses whole wheat flour and buttermilk. 4 m's out of 5.
5. yogurt muffins with berries au choix
We sometimes have opened yogurt that sits in our fridge for a while before it goes bad. When there is a critical mass of two or three opened yogurt containers that leaves enough for a batch, these muffins have been known to emerge from our oven. You can't replace all the butter with applesauce or these ones burn too easily.

They are a little sticky and sweet, but yummy nonetheless, and ecologically responsible (hey, finding a better use forold unspoiled yogurt is better for the earth than a toilet flush)... 4 m's out of 5.

You know how I feel about oil in muffins, but I also always include 50% whole wheat flour (in addition to using unbleached white flour). I also only use fresh frozen local Nova Scotia blueberries. Those grape sized high bush ones are an abomination.

I will also post some of my least favourite muffins:
1. Meadow muffins... need I say more?

2. Love muffins. I wonder about people who call their loved ones "muffin." It's a baked good, not a person to have and to hold. You wouldn't call them "my little love quiche," so why devalue the muffin?
3. Any of the cakey things that pass for muffins at donut shops. Yuck.

4. Costco muffins...Too cakey, and way too much muffin for one person to eat in a sitting.
5. Muffins with nuts. Not a big fan.

Hit me back people. Let us dialogue about the culinary delight that is muffins. (Hey, if we blog about muffins, are we bluffin? EEEWWW... Sorry about that one...)

and now....

2006-11-25T22:52:00.000-04:00

...for your blog reading and vlog viewing pleasure, my first ever vlog.

My assignment? Set up the Sony HVR-Z1U on a tripod and shoot two minutes of footage using the skills taught in last week's class (those being pan, tilt and zoom).

(I wasn't supposed to EDIT the footage, but I couldn't contain myself...Forgive me Father James.)

Great tune...

2006-11-24T21:12:00.000-04:00

Loving See You Soon by Coldplay off their bonus CD Coldplay Live 2003- first heard this version while crafting my podcast last Saturday at JP2MI.

I'm also loving that I got the DVD/CD set on amazon.ca used and delivered to my door for $10.48 CDN- that even beats Itunes... Ecommerce is good!

Love this...

2006-11-24T20:52:00.000-04:00

My son, Jonah, and I hung out tonight as Lori hit a local craft fair with my Mom and sister Rachel. We played trains, coloured a massive Superman picture and did some serious dinky racing on a track sloping off the couch in our living room.

He noshed a snack of granny smith apple chunks, clementine sections and fresh cherries (pits removed, of course).

We're sitting at the kitchen table munching and playing with a few trucks, and he grabs a cherry, pops it into his mouth and closes his eyes, tilts his curly-haired head back as if savouring a rare cabernet sauvignon and says "Mmmmm Daddy. This makes me so yummy."

Classic line, to which I responded silently in my heart "you don't even know how right you are son."

Thanks for such an amazing boy, Lord. He's a joy and a treasure for life. Oh- and thanks for the cherries...

Know when to hold'em...

2006-11-23T22:10:00.000-04:00

Kenny Rogers had it right folks- if you're going to play the game, know when to make the move that brings you the win.

Kudos to Jonathan for realizing that he had already made his bed when he mutinied against Aitu, and that someone had to be the one to shift the momentum of the game.

I have to say that the player that I am most disappointed in is Nate. He was a sharp guy, but he never seized the day and made the moves that would have put him in a position to win it all. Not seeing that Aitu needed a 5th after the merge was a major gaffe, and a missed opportunity to split the trio of Adam, Candice and Parvati OR send Jonathan, everyone's top choice as a liability, packing. Leaving Jonathan as the guy to flop was a bad call- he knew he was the swing vote. So YOU become the swing vote and let people believe Jonathan was the rogue agent.

I often wonder why more people don't make more bold moves like this and shake the game up. Making unpredictable moves keeps everyone on their toes and potential allies. It also leaves people scrambling to unite against you- broken plans take a long time to put right. Improvisation leads to errors...

Now the game has shifted- if Adam, Parvati and Candice want to stay alive, they have to change their plan and reach out and shift the alliances in Aitu, and they aren't that smart.

Jonathan also can spill Yul's beans about the immunity idol at his convenience to the Raro leftovers. He is now free to play the game without scruples, which no one else can do. That's a great ace in the hole, because who won't take a guy who sold out two tribes to the final two?

Jonathan comes up with a couple of immunity challenge wins and orchestrates a couple of votes, and he has as compelling a case to win as anyone who was loyal...

The game become more interesting tonight- love the turn of the screw, and we see again that the smart players who hesitate get whacked instead of deciding who gets whacked.

Merry Starbucks...

2006-11-20T22:49:00.000-04:00

Jonah and I had a little father-son date at Starbucks tonite. He ordered his usual, and we shared a raspberry muffin (he insisted on spreading the butter though).

I went with the Christmas blend (grande black, with a teaspoon of honey), but I didn't love it.

I have come to appreciate good coffee, though I am not ready to log my coffee-talk weekly (check out my man Peter's coffeenerdness for that). However, I got to thinking about my fave blends, and I will share them with you here (#1 being my most highly enjoyed):
1. Komodo Dragon blend
2. Verona
3. Sumatra
4. House blend

Coffees that do not make my list are Ethiopian Sidomo (very stark and harsh) and the aforementioned Christmas blend (very flat tasting- has a hint of cardboard to it).

Perhaps I will be viewed as a coffee snob and/or un-Canadian for not including Tim Horton's coffee here, but I cannot endorse a coffee that is simply not worth drinking black.

I drink about once a week, and usually at Starbucks. That's my drink list- so how do you Starbuck? Hit me back with a grande comment blend... Cream and sugar can be found here.

My only other recommendation? Sip with someone you love (the love of your life or your favourite three year old both serve to enhance the experience significantly)....

Coffee on y'all!

Do you know...

2006-11-19T19:01:00.000-04:00

Whether your first name is becoming more or less popular?

What with baby#2 on the way in January, Lori and I are heavy into figuring out names.

We like names that aren't totally commonplace, but finding information about what's very trendy and what has staying power has been tough to come by (other than the plethora of top 10 most popular baby names by year lists that are on the web in droves).

That is, until we found this.

Gotta love people creating wacky stuff in Java script. Check out your own name and see how it stacks up in current trends and take a look at how prevalent it has been over the last 100 years or so.

Cooking with gas....

2006-11-18T15:45:00.000-04:00

Check out my first podcast EVER.

Gotta say that being part of JP2MI has been a real breath of fresh air for me so far. It's not just learning technology stuff. More than once working on assignments has been really impactful. Making this podcast was really moving for me- had a moment with Jesus in the editing lab putting this together...

Let me know what you think. I think I just might do this again.

Audi 5000.

NICE....

2006-11-17T00:18:00.000-04:00

If you didn't catch this week's episode of Survivor, then you missed an awesome show.

Lori, my friend Tim and I have talked at length about how the game needs more wrinkles more often. Tonight, we got one, and what a doozy it was.

Lesson learned from tonight's show: always be ready to give your best effort, like Aitu has been, and don't think that because you have more of something than somebody else that it gives you a definitive advantage.

Hats off to the creative team at Survivor for keeping the game fresh and exciting- nice wrinkle. Hope to see a couple more before it's over.

Personal Rant: Shame on Raro for not seeing the rising power of the 4 caucausian members. Nate, I thought you were smarter than that. Now it's you against the man- spark up the Tupac my friend. Hope you can navigate that and make the merge....

When your dreams attack like a ninja....

2006-11-15T15:12:00.000-04:00

I remember hearing a story told by a grandson of Dutch grandparents about the liberation of Holland. His grandparents told him how they survived awful conditions and treatment under the Nazi occupation, subsisting on tulip bulbs for months sometimes.

They told him how the one thing that kept them alive was the hope that they would one day be free again, and they hung on to life so hard because of that hope.

The challenging part of the story came when they described how on the day that they were liberated by Canadian troops, exhausted, sick and emaciated Dutchmen and women streamed out of their homes as the troops filed by, realizing they were free. Some erupted for joy and danced and wept and embraced the liberating forces and celebrated that freedom, their great hope, had come unexpected to their door, and they were ready to live again.

What broke my heart was the description of many Dutchmen and women, who, when freedom found its way to their doors as they had prayed and fought for every day, fell down and died from massive heart failures because they couldn't handle the reality that freedom was finally there. They had existed for so long in captivity and conditioned themselves to just survive that when freedom, their wildest dream, arrived, their hearts couldn't deal with it and they keeled over dead.

That's a pretty weighty story, but I was reminded of it this summer when I wondered if I was ever going to get a job with the school board, or if I was ever going to be able to afford to buy a home for my wife and family. It was pretty desperate, but I really felt God challenge me to keep my dream alive, no matter what it took.

Mere weeks later I had a full time job with the school board, finally earning a salary on par with my teaching peers instead of living on sub poverty wages as a substitute teacher.

We started to talk about buying a home about a month later. Last week we went to see our first batch of houses. We wrote an offer on one last Saturday, not really expecting anything to come together.

I learned my lesson. Sometimes God answers your prayer after years, but you have to be so careful not to let yourself box God into a space where you only believe he can do something if it takes years to accomplish it.

The offer we put in was accepted by noon the next day, and pending an inspection and estimate from an electrician tomorrow afternoon, we will be homeowners on December 11, 2006, in time for us to fully renovate all the things we want to complete and move in before baby #2 comes in January.

It's been almost 6 years since we moved home from Montreal to Halifax, and sometimes it seemed like none of this would ever happen. But this last two months is a reminder to me that just because it looks like nothing is happening doesn't mean God isn't at work and contending for you, and that the things you hold on to God for are never far from his heart.

So, if you're holding on for something, don't give up and don't let go of your dream. You never know when it will drop out of the air and bushwack you like a herd of ninjas....

How do I get off this crazy train...

2006-11-10T07:58:00.000-04:00

How do you slow down when life is loopy? The last three weeks have been nutso for me- something happening every night. I feel like I haven't had a meaningful chat with my wife or son in about month (although that's not true), and I just feel numb or zoned out most of the time.

My biggest worry is about what's going to happen when our second baby comes, probably sometime 6 to 8 weeks from now. I'm really jazzed about the baby- I'm excited to find out what that little person is like, to see their face and smell their head (one of the little publicized joys of parenthood, although Bono did tip off the world about it- check out line 10).

I'm just concerned about the transition and making sure that life doesn't get out of control. I know Lori and I made the transition with Jonah just fine, and we made a rhythm that worked after he got here, and I know that we'll be OK when baby comes, it's just that I wonder how it will all shake down.

I'm not mourning the loss of "normal." A wise man once told me this about parenthood:

When you think things are changed forever and you look back and think about what normal used to be like, take a deep breath, smile and relax; welcome yourself to your new normal.

I guess I am just so thankful for the fullness Lori and I have been able to find since Jonah's birth. Our lives didn't end- they got much richer, and I think that our marriage and our life has been more amazing since Jonah than either ever was before.

I'm not worried about life not being amazing either- just that we've worked so hard to come to where we are, and adding a new person means going back to work.

And maybe that's why I am stressed. I'm really tired right now- not just from three weeks, but from a stretch of life where I have carried a lot, and I don't want to cheap the effort needed to build a new "amazing" because I am weary. If I cheat, it won't be my family that gets shorted, but that means something else does.

My problem is that I am a 100% guy- whatever I do gets that much, because if it's worth doing, it's worth doing right. Only now some of those things I can only afford 60% on, and some things don't work with that kind of effort.

So something has to go! If there are wiser and more learned people out there who have walked this line before, I am your grasshopper. Throw me a bone here. :)

Right on...

2006-11-08T18:39:00.000-04:00

Lori Boucher wrote an awesome entry today about being passionate about being who you are (check it out here).

Her thoughts are something that I have come to terms with since I moved back to Halifax five years ago.

At the time, I really wrestled with being recognized or appreciated (or at least needing that, or needing people to see me and my value as a person and a part of the body of Christ). I struggled because I was engaged in things I was passionate about, which was amazing, but conflicted about not rising to prominence through that.

God really challenged me on that- about both striving to be someone "big", and about making others "bigger" than myself in order to rise to their level somehow.

I finally came to a place where I found rest- I had to make up my mind about two things:
1. That if what I was doing was really for God- the audience of one- and that if it pleased him, then affirmation from elsewhere was irrelevant. Was I going to be satsified and fulfilled with the pleasure of God, or was I going to be selfish and require people to fawn over me to meet my needs for signficance?
2. Whether or not I would allow myself to find my identity in who God says I am instead of my value to others in what I can do, and what I contribute to others. Would I accept God at face value when he says that I am fearfully made, that I am no more or less significant or important to the work of the church than the newest Christian or the most famous pastor?

Talk about dying to self. It's one thing to say that you are going to make up your mind about stuff life this- it's another to live out your decision.

But, with God's help, I did. I stopped looking at my role in ministry as a vehicle to esteem, honour and even notoriety. I started seeing it as my opportunity to bless God's heart in a way that only I could. When I did, it was like a whale was lifted off my back and spirit, and I felt less burdened and more effective, confident and connected to others than ever. I was able to say things like "This is important to me, but it doesn't matter if it's me that accomplishes it- my passion is to see it happen. If I can be part of it in any way at, especially if it's an invisible role- it would be joy to my heart to see it come together," and really mean it.

I also stopped feeling inferior and superior to people. I totally respect figures within the church who have found a place of esteem- Billy Graham, TD Jakes, David Demian- they are gifted and important, and I would be remiss not to honour them for their service to the church. But where I used to feel second class and intimidated to talk with people on what I perceived to be a higher level, I found myself discovering that they are people just like me- their underwear gets dirty, they get tired and cranky, they have bad habits they struggle with- and that their part of body isn't more critical than mine. If I don't fulfill my role, they suffer like I would if they abdicated their role.

I could approach serving with a confidence that what I was doing really did matter, and that as much as I could learn from them, I had something that could bless them too.

And I stopped finding my significance in function. I'm not valuable because of everything I do- I am valuable because I am me, because God created me because he wanted to and felt I was needed in the world. I am a masterpiece in progress, something beautiful underway, and there is no one of whom this is not true.

So when I say that I refuse to be "small" anymore, I mean that I refuse to belittle, devalue and constrain myself to destiny that is far lesser than the destiny God intends. I approach everything I do as if I am a critical factor in its success, and work to achieve that success knowing that in doing so I have a ready made opportunity to point people to Christ when it comes time to acknowledge contribution and hand out honour, because anything I can do stems directly from how much God has invested in me and enabled me to do.

So Lori, RIGHT ON. Well put, and to all of you out there- remember this little song I learned when I was a little boy if you feel like shrinking back from being who God made you to be:
I'm someone special
I'm the only one of my kind
God gave me a body
and a bright and healthy mind
He has a special purpose
That He wants me to find
That's why I'm someone special
I'm the only one of my kind..

As we like to say here in Nova Scotia when considering whether to go for it or not, just give'er.

Catching the fallen

2006-11-04T11:57:00.000-04:00

We had a very interesting discussion in class last week about the increased presence of religious content and theme in the media, particularly over the last two years (buoyed in large part by Mel Gibson's The Passion of The Christ and the death of Pope John Paul II). Part of our discussion centered around the prevalence of religious "content" in many programs that paint a slanted portrait of people of faith. One of our instructors remarked that several recent episodes of CSI have featured priests (one as the victim in a homicide, one as an adulterer entwined in the murder of his pregnant lover), and we asked whether these representations are good because the provide some foundation for discussion and clarification with those who don't believe, or whether they are bad because they add to the negative picture of Christianity and faith already entrenched in our culture.

Then this past Friday, details of Ted Haggard's resignation/removal from his church due to moral failing surfaced. The spin around this was flying, what with the American midterm election campaigning at full throttle, and I heard several pundits refer to Haggard merely as an "influential right-wing evangelical."

Coming from the secular media, I understand their label, because to them he's a political figure first, seeking to influence election outcomes. Still, I found it unnerving to see a man reduced to a political factor- there is so much more at stake in the outcome of this for Haggard and the church than how it affects a "rightist" turnout in the midterms.

As difficult as this news was for Christians and the Church, I feel that it offers us the opportunity to show the world how Christ mandated we should deal with the fallen and turn what could be a black mark into a testimony of grace at work and demonstrate that the church operates differently than the world does.

I found myself reflecting back to a time where my favourite worship leader, Kevin Prosch, told the world about moral failing that required him to step away from public ministry. Now Prosch never has exerted an influence as significant as Haggard's, but the reaction to the news fell divided.

One one hand, some believed that Prosch was totally done in ministry- that his failing (and the resulting failure of his marriage) disqualified him from ever holding any position in the church again.

This was really out of touch with how God asks us to deal with those who have fallen:

1 Live creatively, friends. If someone falls into sin, forgivingly restore him, saving your critical comments for yourself. You might be needing forgiveness before the day's out. 2 Stoop down and reach out to those who are oppressed. Share their burdens, and so complete Christ's law. 3 If you think you are too good for that, you are badly deceived. 4 Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that. Don't be impressed with yourself. Don't compare yourself with others. (Galatians 6:1-4, The Message)

Thankfully, some gathered around Prosch and prayed for his restoration and provided a place of safety in which to deal with his failing, re-establish credibility and allow healing and development of personal character to help ensure there was no repeat.

The first group was far, far louder than the second. Thankfully, the second group was far more persistent and effective.

In 2002, Kevin made a return to the world of worship with his CD Palanquin, and to a place of ministry in the church.

I was glad to see Kevin back. Whenever I hear scripture about how all believers make up one body, and that we all have a meaningful place of belonging and purpose, I think of how much I missed Kevin Prosch in worship. He is a uniquely gifted songsmith, and some of his songs have become life-anthems of sorts for me, so when he was restored to ministry it was like a part that was missing was found.

One thing I do note though, is that even with restoration, there will always be a need for people who love Kevin to surround him and love him enough to help him guard against the temptation to which he fell before. Being restored doesn't mean that no one remembers or is required to forget the fall altogether- it means that despite the fall, grace and mercy are applied and a place is made for the fallen to come back to the table, and that one must be ever vigilant, with the help of community, to walk in a way that seeks to cut off opportunity to fall again.

That's my prayer for Ted Haggard. He's a real guy with a real family- he's not just a factor in an election. I pray that he will find people ready to love him, pray and walk with him and restore him, and a place in the body where he can still fulfill the destiny that God intended for him. I'm in no position to throw stones at him, and I pray for the body of Christ that we will remember that Jesus saved us from sins no less grievous than his before we speak in anything but love.

Mercy, grace and love to you Ted. May you fall into the hands of Christ and the arms of loving brothers and sisters to rise again and find your place in the body.

Basking in goodness...

2006-10-31T20:56:00.000-04:00

One of the joys I have at my local church is to lead in worship and to worship with other lead worshippers, and over the last year I have noticed a real deepening in our worship. Not that we were a shallow lot before this, but I know that I have learned to worship from a place of lack and need just as passionately as I have from a place of fulfillment.

One of the things I love about this shift is how our songs have really moved away from a theme of what we receive from God to songs about who God is, about his nature and how he is always faithful and good to us in all things. I usually lead once every four weeks in rotation with other leaders, and I find myself increasingly lost in God's confounding goodness in worship. I am so overcome that often all I can do is play my guitar because I am unable to sing or I am a sobbing mess and couldn't blubber a chorus to save the world.

I wanted to share some of the songs I keep coming back to in worship that keep that sense of overwhelming goodness fresh in my heart with you, so without further ado:

His Banner Over Me Is Love, by Kevin Prosch (with a nod to Capstone's rendition on Jesus Lifted High)

Your Love, by Eoghan Heaslip
Faithful, by Eoghan Heaslip

O Taste and See, by Brian and Jenn Johnson

How Can I Keep From Singing, by Chris Tomlin

You Are There (Psalm 139), by Joel Engle

Friend of God, by Lakewood Church

Worthy, by Matt Redman

Sometimes I wonder if people are tired of singing these songs as often as we do, but I inevitably can't escape that these songs are voices to what's gushing out of my heart towards God, and that I am better off worshipping through songs that reflect what's really in my heart than pumping out tunes that sound good but aren't coming from a genuine place in my spirit...

Wondering what songs you are worshipping to that are stroking the gotta-sing-about-how-good-God-is bone... Drop me a note and let me know- I'd love to hear what's moving you to move God's heart.

Rock on y'all- rock on....

Gripping stuff...

2006-10-31T08:26:00.000-04:00

I watched this program

the other night on PBS and was incredibly moved.

It chronicles one man's efforts to uncover his African roots (as well has his efforts to help several prominent black people's roots simultaneously), delving through geneaological resources, documents in archives across the US and using some cutting edge DNA techniques to ascertain the genetic breakdown of his ancestry.

It was amazing to see people's reactions to the discovery of various things: the shared ancestry with both white and black slaveholders, the shared ancestry with really amazing individuals who made a difference in their time, and the discovery of shared genetic history with real peoples in Africa and other places in the world.

Perhaps the most moving part of the story was seeing Chris Tucker's journey to Africa to visit the villages of a people he shares a definitive portion of his genetic code with. You could see how overwhelmed he was to be amongst people who were his family, despite never knowing them. The discovery of this bond immediately impacted him and changed his life, having an anchor in a place where once there were only questions.

It got me thinking about how amazing God is, and how transforming his love is. Not everyone has the resources to pursue the kind of self-discovery that the host of the show or Chris Tucker did, but God provides us with a center in our identity that's unshakeable. He gives us identity and worth from the moment we are conceived, and never loses sight of who we are. He cares for us down to the most minute details, and gives us a future and a hope.

The thing I love the most about this aspect of God is that I don't have to go all the way across the world to find it- he is reaching, straining with every fibre of his being across the breach of eternity to me in every moment to make himself real and flood my life with goodness, love and mercy. It's why self-definition happens most profoundly when in the midst and context of learning what God believes, says and loves about us- your whole life is changed.

Thanks God- you do all things well....

Go me... It's my birthday....

2006-10-27T19:28:00.000-03:00

Just finished having dinner with my wife, our boss and my folks and Lori is on the way to the airport to drop our boss off, so I thought I would stream (read: let my mind run onto paper) for a couple minutes.

I turned 31 today, and while I am not one of those people for whom milestone birthdays (30th, 40th, 50th, etc) inspire fits of despair and loathing of life, I will admit that birthdays and the times leading up to them have offered greater reason for reflection as of late.

If you read this blog, you know that I am taking the John Paul II Media Institute course on media production. At class the other night I realized that I am the only person in the group who has a child. It was kind of interesting, because part of what I was talking about really doesn't make full sense unless you have kids.

I love the perspective that comes with getting older. I'm no old fart by any stretch (and I do not intend to ever fall into that category), but I do see that time and life lived really helps crystallize things to a state that you can appreciate them and decide what you are going to hang onto in life and what you let go of.

The last 5-7 years have been really amazing for me because God has really done a work in my life to break me out of my self-imposed pressure to either grow up or get over things. I was always in such a rush to get through things that were difficult or needed me to take a look at myself and then invest in the process of growth; I saw areas I needed to grow in as indicators of weakness, poor character or laziness, and I dealt with them ruthlessly and mercilessly, like I was rubbing out hostile rebel forces in my life.

Over that time, I have learned to not have to drive myself at impractical and unhelpful pacing. I have learned that there's healing in walking in your brokeness before God and letting people into your life to help you where you are weak. I have learned that God's goodness is at work in my life whether I am hurting or hooray-ing, and to center myself in that goodness at all times regardless of what's going on in life.

I enjoy life more than I used to. I strive less, and I am at rest about who God made me to be and what he's doing in my life to help me become everything he intended. I don't have points to make or axes to grind- I just want to live honestly and give God my best in everything, and I am learning to love giving my best in something I really am poor at as much as I love giving my best in the things that I am fantastic in.

As a Dad, I love Jonah more than I ever did, and I enjoy him every bit as much now as I ever did when he was just born- I don't pine for other times or stages of development, because I love him for who he is, and no matter how old he gets, he'll always be who he is, and I'll love and value him just as much then as now.

God is helping me to have that kind of grace for myself- to love me for who I am, and for where I am in God's plan and purpose for my life, and to believe the best about me and hope and trust for an amazing life.

I used to hate my birthday- it reminded me of all the things that were wrong with me. I secretly called it the worst day of the year because I saw all the things that I hadn't changed or grown past, and how far and how hard I could work and never realize the kind of change in my life that I was really longing for.

Now birthdays are days of appreciation- for the goodness and faithfulness of God throughout the year just finishing- and they are days of anticipation- for greater grace, growth and fulfillment of promise for another year.

Can't tell you how amazing it feels to write this- to look back and see how God has changed my heart and helped me grow more tender and beautiful instead of hard and angry. It's pretty overwhelming, and I'm fairly bursting with hope for what God can do in my heart this year.

Thanks for celebrating with me. I'll try and post some dinner pics from my party tomorrow so you can savor the amazing grub from afar. Let me know if you're ever in Halifax so you can come by and commiserate- TTFN. :)

Redemptoris Missio nos. 37-38

2006-10-24T20:45:00.000-03:00

Not being a Catholic, I am thoroughly enjoying the readings taken from texts by John Paul II. I have always appreciated him (in part because he is a fellow Pole), yet I find myself increasingly taken with his accurate reading of the state of the church, its role and needs for change and adaptation. It's amazing to learn more about him and his passion for the church as we move along.

In particular, sections of the reading that spoke to me included:

Today the image of mission ad gentes is perhaps changing: efforts should be concentrated on the big cities, where new customs and styles of living arise together with new forms of culture and communication, which then influence the wider population. It is true that the "option for the neediest" means that we should not overlook the most abandoned and isolated human groups, but it is also true that individual or small groups cannot be evangelized if we neglect the centers where a new humanity, so to speak, is emerging, and where new models of development are taking shape. The future of the younger nations is being shaped in the cities.
Speaking of the future, we cannot forget the young, who in many countries comprise more than half the population. How do we bring the message of Christ to non-Christian young people who represent the future of entire continents? Clearly, the ordinary means of pastoral work are not sufficient: what are needed are associations, institutions, special centers and groups, and cultural and social initiatives for young people. This is a field where modern ecclesial movements have ample room for involvement.
Among the great changes taking place in the contemporary world, migration has produced a new phenomenon: non-Christians are becoming very numerous in traditionally Christian countries, creating fresh opportunities for contacts and cultural exchanges, and calling the Church to hospitality, dialogue, assistance and, in a word, fraternity...

As in the reading from week 2, John Paul's identification of the need for the church to achieve both fluency and fraternity in the culture and language of the emerging generations is another reminder that old wineskins and old wine cannot quench the thirst of the world- that requires Christ's new wine, and we must allow ourselves to be transformed and become new wineskins.

This requires us to meet the world where it is, like Christ did, and not be afraid to be in the world, and demonstrate a genuine compassion for the lost that is primarily expressed by consistent presence in the everyday lives of people, immersed in the way that they are while shining, living a hope and way that draws people to Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit.

After preaching in a number of places, St. Paul arrived in Athens, where he went to the Areopagus and proclaimed the Gospel in language appropriate to and understandable in those surroundings (cf. Acts 17:22-31)...There is a deeper reality involved here: since the very evangelization of modern culture depends to a great extent on the influence of the media, it is not enough to use the media simply to spread the Christian message and the Church's authentic teaching. It is also necessary to integrate that message into the "new culture" created by modern communications. This is a complex issue, since the "new culture" originates not just from whatever content is eventually expressed, but from the very fact that there exist new ways of communicating, with new languages, new techniques and a new psychology. Pope Paul VI said that "the split between the Gospel and culture is undoubtedly the tragedy of our time,"⁶² and the field of communications fully confirms this judgment.

This further confirms our mission as disciples that we not only have a call to evangelize individuals (which we do!), but we are also called to redeem cultures for the sake of the gospel. To simply use a culture as a conduit to pipeline a message demonstrates a contempt for that culture, and those who live within it. If we love the people, we will also learn to love their culture, and allow Christ to walk with us, reach into an entire people and create transformation on a social level. This reminds me of how Hudson Taylor approached his missions work, loving and living his way into Chinese communities.

Our times are both momentous and fascinating.

I love that John Paul II refuses to see our times as anything other than an incredible opportunity unlike any yet seen in history, as a frontier to be pioneered, explored and connected to the gospel like the missions to the new world in the times of Cartier and Columbus. I think it's critical that we approach our call with this kind of zeal and perspective; instead of living under a crushing weight of impossibility and defeatism, we stride boldly into the unknown, trusting God to lead us and empower us with a message and a medium that can and will redeem our time and culture. He did it with the early church under Roman rule without mass media- how much more can we achieve with equal zeal and a host of strategies and tools that have never before existed?

Thanks for the reading- looking forward to discussing this tomorrow.

updating last week's homework

2006-10-24T20:35:00.000-03:00

I wanted to post another photo for consideration, as the one I posted last week wasn't actually taken by me. This one was taken in an effort to use the elements of composition covered in our session with Dan on Digital Photography.

(O Dan, where art the notes for thine lesson, within which are contained learnings and knowledge I long to recall and review for the betterment of mine application of the principles thou has expounded unto us? Missio Basiatio Adulatio Magister, Paulus Wozney I, 2006)

Without further ado or butchering of latin, here it is for your consideration:

little things make a big difference

2006-10-23T23:52:00.000-03:00

I am working on a Thomas the Tank Engine mock-up that fits in my son's wagon so he can have a steam engine to conduct for Halloween when he goes trick-or-treating as an engineer. He's pretty nuts about trains, so it's a lot of fun to be working on something he's so excited about.

I'm building this thing out of plywood, so I am spending some good time in my Dad's garage using his tools. Jonah loves being in the workshop, and he tries to help with whatever I am doing.

One thing I have made up my mind about as a dad is that I want Jonah to know not just how special he is to me, but also that I need him as much as he needs me. Because of that, I always try to make space in whatever I am doing for Jonah to be involved.

If we're baking cookies, I let him turn on the kitchenaid and dump in the dry ingredients and unwrap the blocks of margarine (and sneak tastes of the batter...don't tell mom though...). When we're in the workshop, I let him help me mark pencil lines for measurements, sand wood with a sanding block, or let him paint wood scraps with the same paint I am using for our Thomas project.

It might not be teaching him rocket science, but what Jonah is learning is that we will do things together, and that we will help each other. It's a little thing, but I already see Jonah jumping into action without being asked to help when we start something new, and it's because he believes that he's capable and that he's needed. He's not even three yet, and he already is proactive about helping and working together.

If you are a parent, or anyone who works with kids or youth, make time in your life for little things like this. They pay huge dividends down the road, and it's amazing to see kids blossom with some personal investment and encouragement. They never turn out perfect, but lessons learned well when you're little or young end up lessons lived well when you're old.

I will post a picture of our Thomas mock-up next week in time for Halloween. He's looking more like a train every day!

going low...

2006-10-21T17:50:00.000-03:00

Lori and I were talking today about friends that live in another town in Nova Scotia who have decided to start a church together. She asked me how I felt about it, and got thinking about it.

These friends are wonderful people who truly love God and have a heart to win people and disciple them, and I would never presume to have an accurate read on the motivation of their hearts for starting a new church. So my answer ended up being a question: are they called to serve in the church, or to separate themselves from the existing church and start something completely new?

One of my heartaches for the church is how so few people see the call to ministry simply as a call to serve willingly in a church where they can be a blessing to a shepherd and establish themselves as a pillar of that church without seeking honour or acclaim for themselves, and how so many need for that call to result in a full-time ministry position (often of prominence and recognition) in order to follow it faithfully and passionately.

This is not to say that I resent or don't respect those who serve in paid ministry positions- the only job I've ever known my Dad to have is as a pastor of a local congregation. What really bothers me is that so many automatically assume a call to ministry decrees that they should become a pastor (or more specifically, paid clergy).

This kind of thinking demonstrates a real lack of understanding about "pastoring." Pastoring is a spiritual gift and a five-fold office established by the Holy Spirit; it is not a job title or an position of employment that validates a passion or confirms someone's gifting. Graham Cooke did some amazing teaching on this that has stayed with me ever since, and the longer I live in community with other believers, the more accurate his teaching is.

What's more problematic for me is that the church tends to validate and perpetuate this understanding of serving and leading within the church. I get invitations to attend amazing conferences all the time, yet I can count the number of times the main speaker (or even a second tier keynote speaker) has been anything other than paid clergy (and typically paid clergy from churches that are huge and famous) on one hand.

I am not closed in the least to sitting under the ministry of people like this- I have learned some life changing things this way.

I simply cringe at the divorce between the message often spoken about the need to walk in humility and selflessness, to let your giftings speak for themselves instead of seeking self-promotion, to prefer others above yourself and love with Christ's love that seeks to see those you minister to exceed you and accomplish far greater things than you ever did and the silently conveyed message that far too often seems to trump the one just described: that the people really worth listening or opening your heart to are those who are famous or popular or leading large churches or reaching huge audiences.

What this unspoken message serves to do is perpetuate the myth that the people speaking at these events are somehow more gifted or capable of greater impact than you or I. People see this dynamic, coupled with the revolving door cycle that pastoring has become in the evangelical church, and see that "ministry" is for really amazing people, not for the everyday person.

I remember as a teen wrestling with the very clear call I felt to ministry and the passion I had to become a teacher, feeling as if these things were mutually exclusive and that I would have to pick one or the other. So many youth pastors and leaders in my area that I approached for counsel laid it on thick that if I really loved God and felt a call that the only God-honouring course should be bible college immediately after school.

Thank God my Dad had the good sense to make sure that I got real counsel. He was so sensitive to what I felt in my heart, and never did anything to pressure me one way or the other. In fact, I will always remember how he challenged me to listen to God for myself and follow what I felt God saying. The icing has been that my Dad, to this day, has not only verbalized his support, but has consistently put his money(as in hard earned paycheck), house, car, time and help where his mouth was.

Now, after 5 years of secular education at Dalhousie and McGill universities and nearly 8 years of work experience with three different secular school boards, I have never been more sure of or secure in the call I felt all those years ago or my pursuit of a career as a teacher. Not only do I shine every day in a workplace where there are few believers and have an opportunity to serve and be a blessing to people that have never seen or heard of Jesus, but I also serve in leadership at my church and minister in many facets- sunday school teacher and organizer, lead worshipper and helper to other leaders in worship, board member, webmaster and tech leader, and sometime speaker and teacher when my Dad is away or visiting his second congregation.

I have more opportunity to minister where I am than many pastors do in "ministry" positions with specific (and sometimes restrictive) portfolios, and I'm more in love with the church than I have ever been. It's a crime that we herd people to theological schools with such gusto (often to find few or no opportunities to work as a pastor) and do so little to affirm them in following their God-given dreams in the career of their heart and help them discover their giftings and ministry strengths in the context of relationship and commitment to a local church, pastor and congregation.

SO (after such a gargantuan entry), one of my hopes in pursuing "ministry" through my life's work and involvement with my local church is to demonstrate that every life is a platform to minister from, and that we rob ourselves of untold heart-wealth by ignoring the riches nearest ourselves in each other in favour of hearing the latest DVD series from Pastor Amazing from the Incredible Intergalactic Church (ok, so I'm being sarcastic here...).

Along with that, my prayer is that we will see the heart of Christians shift from propping up the cult of pastor-hero-celebrities that is such a huge part of the 20-80 problem (20% of the people in the church do 80% of the work, with a startling chunk of that 20% on the payroll...) to esteeming one another and giving place and honour to the people in our midst and tapping the Jesus in each other.

Whew... I feel better. Thanks for listening. Y'all come again, y'hear? Loads of love...

Genius...

2006-10-20T18:54:00.000-03:00

It's surreal how accurately my son has captured our likeness as a family..... What a great kid!

feel the music...

2006-10-20T09:05:00.000-03:00

Had a crying-in-the-car-on-the-way-to-work moment with Jesus this morning while rocking out to this song:

I want to live like there's no tomorrow
I want to dance like no one's around
I want to sing like nobody's listening
Before I lay my body down
I want to give like I have plenty
I want to love like I'm not afraid
I want to be the man I was meant to be
I want to be the way I was made

Made in Your likeness, made with Your hands
Made to discover who You are and who I am
All I've forgotten help me to find
All that You've promised let it be in my life
~Chris Tomlin, The Way I Was Made, from the album Arriving

In the words of Phil Hartman, playing an acting coach in a SNL sketch, live that way....live that way...

I'm filthy rich....

2006-10-20T00:54:00.000-03:00

Not that I don't daily take time to return thanks to God for my incredibly full life- you know, the one where I enjoy amazing health, am surrounded by incredible people who love me and believe in me, live in an unbelievable home, eat and drink as much nutritious and delicious food and safe, clean water as I can handle, dress in seasonally appropriate clothing that is clean and fashionable, and enjoy the freedom to worship, participate in democracy and express my opinion and write freely- but sometimes you just GOTTA take a moment to savour the riches God pours into you unceasingly. (Props to J-Boucher for sharing this)

After a full day at school, I had an evening professional development session to attend until 6pm and then a curriculum night back at school from 6:30-7:30pm. It was a long day, and I was glad to get home at about 8:10 pm.

I opened the door and got tackled (almost jacked up) by my son, who just about blew out his vocal chords screaming "DADDY! YOU'RE HOME!". He nearly hugged my left knee into a condition requiring surgery, and then I got to hug and kiss my otherworldly wife and savour the aroma of her hair and skin while she told me I was missed and loved.

I don't want for a thing Lord. You're good to me beyond any measure of reason, and all I can do is say how grateful I am and celebrate your kindness, generosity and faithfulness to me. My life is the jackpot, and I know all of it comes straight from your heart to me.

(***Longlasting dumbfounding inner silence and an overwhelming realization of how amazing God has commenced. Stand by.)

Well put...

2006-10-17T22:30:00.000-03:00

"It is no use walking anywhere to preach unless our walking is our preaching."
St. Francis of Assisi

Me too Chris....

2006-10-17T18:32:00.000-03:00

The bridge in Chris Tomlin's opening track How Can I Keep From Singing Your Praise? on his new album See The Morning.

I can sing in the troubled times
Sing when I win
I can sing when I lose my step
And I fall down again

I can sing 'cause You pick me up
Sing 'cause You're there
I can sing 'cause You hear me, Lord
When I call to You in prayer

I can sing with my last breath
Sing for I know
That I'll sing with the angels
And the saints around the throne

Amen to that.

Homework: A Picture of Passion

2006-10-17T16:16:00.000-03:00

I got to spend some awesome family time with my wife and son at the Maritime Fall Fair last Saturday morning. It's always a blast, and mainly because I love seeing Jonah so excited about seeing new things.

I picked this photo as an example of passion for a few reasons:

because the donkey is TOTALLY into the treats he's nibbling
Jonah is electric at the experience of being around farm animals and feeling the big, fuzzy lips against his hand
I can't think of many things better in life than sharing incredible moments with my family. I'm loopy about my son, and I might be more excited about the whole experience than he was. Seeing him smile and laugh and enjoy life is surreal- everything "serious" disappears when that happens.

If you have kids, you know what I mean. If you don't, you'll have to wait until you have at least one, a handful of feed and a hungry donkey in a petting zoo to really feel this one...

Be careful about what you think is cool....

2006-10-16T18:16:00.000-03:00

Covering for a colleague away for a sports tournament today, I had the task of supervising three grade 9 classes. Two were fine, with most students doing what was asked of them and without much, if any grief.

One class took every opportunity to be as rude and defiant as possible. I asked the group if they were for real- that what I was seeing was an accurate picture of who they were and what they thought was important. One kid jeered that she wasn't doing anything she didn't normally do or that wasn't something she was absolutely proud of. A bunch of her classmates ate it up and cheered her on as she wasted hers and everyone else's time. I thanked her for her input and ended the conversation.

Meanwhile, there were about a half dozen students making every effort to do what their teacher had left for them to do in an unbelievably noisy and distracting environment, paying little heed to the silliness surrounding them.

I thought about it after school and was amazed at the difference in the two groups. One group not only thought school was important for them, but they showed that it was by the way they acted and worked regardless of who was in the room and responsible for the class.

The other group showed they thought that peer approval and getting their own way was important, and they were prepared to do whatever it took to achieve what they valued.

Just showed me again how critical it is to watch what you think and dwell on in your mind, what you give air time to in your own thoughts and imagination. If you fill the space with foolishness, then you end up spending your life foolishly and having little to show for it. If you fill it with wisdom, truth or character, you end up paying the price and seeing things develop in your life that bear long lasting and beneficial dividends.

It got me thinking about what I fill my mindspace with regularly, and how that translates into how I am spending my time. I might not think about how to make people look silly, but that doesn't mean everything I am dwelling on is worthwhile or true or beautiful.

Maybe it's because I'm 30, or because I have a son now, or just because I've lived enough to understand, but I see now that time is either spent on things that will last and have value or on things that are ultimately without worth or a waste- there is no middle ground. It either matters in the long run, or it doesn't.

Help me, Jesus, to spend my life investing instead of spending, to give my thoughts to things that pay back benefits for life instead of things that cost me time, life and effort. Help me to be fruitful in all things, regardless of whether it's an easy time to be fruitful or not. I want my life to matter like yours did.

Right? Feels right...

2006-10-14T23:13:00.000-03:00

I happen to serve on the church board at Alive Christian Church. I'm coming up to the end of my first year as an elected board member. It's been an interesting one. You already know how I feel about being a person with concerns who does nothing to help resolve them (see the Edmund Burke quote from my October 4 blog), so I have been very challenged in this role to be even more on guard about being the solution myself as opposed to one who recognizes issues.

One of the things that is coming to the center of our shared faith is that as much as we have an individual walk with Christ, it's linked intrisically to the walk of faith we share as a local church community. We have had some revelatory moments about how true that is in the past couple years, both good and bad, and it struck me again this week how critical it is for us to allow God to build in us the kind of love and commitment for one another that he has for us.

One of the reasons we haven't seen the kind of growth and progress we expected is that we really had a much lower level of care and commitment to one another than we cared to admit. We are now seeing that changing that lower level involves growing through things that people have been reluctant to work through in the past, including resolving conflict, repenting and asking forgiveness, restoring broken relationships and seeking understanding with one another to eliminate places for division to creep in.

This past week I needed to make contact with three people in our congregation, two I needed to apologize to and one I needed to go and resolve an offense with.

While I realize that the devil is never thrilled with people making relationships work, I continue to be amazed at how we let outselves get pscyhed out by seeking resolution, either by overblowing things or simply poo-pooing (can you say that in a blog?) them as unimportant. Hey, I get that working things out holds about the same amount of sex appeal as taking out the trash or scrubbing the toilet, but the benefits of taking care of relationships is a lot like enjoying a clean home or bathroom- the longer you leave things, the more you hate being there, the less likely you are to clean it and the more costly (and distressing) it gets to clean it when it gets to a point where you just can't take it anymore. Clean bathrooms are a treat, and it's easy to relax and live in a clean house- right relationships are like that too.

So I made the three calls I needed to make, and instead of having three headaches I ended up having three really positive and beneficial conversations that left me with three improved relationships.

When you approach resolution from a heart like Christ, it has nothing to do with how correct you or the other person are. It has everything to do with how right your relationship is, and, all of a sudden, who's correct becomes immaterial; what needs to be done to make sure that right relationship continues to flourish takes center stage and God gives you grace to put your best foot forward regardless of what anyone else is doing.

You'll take it on the chin, demonstrating forbearance and love for someone, and they see your true motivation and are willing to find a place of commonality in Christ and work things out. What I love most is that instead of having an ugly bruise that reminds you of a sore spot, your wear a mark that reminds you that love conquers all and provides you with hope and courage to nurture that relationship again and again.

Wounds from a friend are better than many kisses from an enemy. Proverbs 27:6

So who cares who's right? When you (the collective you) are right, then it feels right and you begin to nurture a habit of right living that bears lifechanging fruit in every season you walk through.

Life never gets easier...

2006-10-12T20:03:00.000-03:00

I recently began a new job as a literacy coordinator and support teacher at Ross Road School. This is a welcome change from 3 years of substitute teaching and one year of teaching for a non-profit group where I worked with very troubled youth living in group care. Not that either of those jobs was without merit or its own sense of fulfillment, but knowing where I will work and having some expectation of stability about who I will work with and how they will behave is a very valuable thing when you have existed without either for nearly 5 years.

Getting a term contract was a HUGE answer to prayer, so my relief in finding full-time work was enormous.

All of that said, I found myself at work today feeling rather lost and of little consequence, and it hit me again that life never gets easier or more simple.

Lori, Jonah and I (as well as a myriad of family and friends) prayed for so long to have this opportunity, and now that we have come to the place where we enjoy its fulfillment, I see again that a prayer answered or a goal achieved doesn't lead to total satisfaction.

Not that I assumed this, but simply getting the job wasn't the end of 5 years of really deep, personal testing and struggle. It just marked the end of one struggle and the beginning of a new one.

I'm learning that the real gold in life comes from gleaning every ounce of learning and wisdom you can out of the trials and problems you go through. I can't recall the last time I didn't have some trial facing me in life. Thank God he's helping me to enjoy his process in my life as I grow through them instead of dreading life and the challenges it brings every day.

"But he knows where I am and what I've done. He can cross-examine me all
he wants, and I'll pass the test with honors." Job 23:10

I've learned from my last 5 years to celebrate how good God is when life isn't. Figuring out how to do this new job and carve out a niche where I can make a difference and be a joy in peoples' lives won't be agony- I intend to savour it and enjoy as many moments as God gives me grace for.

Blog Pals....

2006-10-09T12:03:00.000-03:00

Part of my homework for the John Paul II Media Institute this week is to create a blog entry that links to a video or podcast that I enjoyed.

I will do that, AND MORE... lol

Some good friends pastor in Ottawa, Ontario at a great church called the Life Centre (www.lifecentre.org). They are making the sharing of the teaching that happens at their church with others via the web a regular priority, and they have some excellent resources available for people.

There are a couple that I would like to share with you.

The church I attend, Alive Christian Church (www.alivechristianchurch.ca) is currently nearing the end of year 1 of a nearly 3 year long process designed to help us rekindle the passion for disciplemaking and shift the focus and efforts of our church to align with the great command and commission that Christ left for his church.

One of the things I am particularly challenged by and am thoroughly enjoying is examining our beliefs and attitudes about what a disciple is against the backdrop of scripture. Barry Boucher, team leader at the Life Centre, recently spoke about the process of making disciples, providing clarity about what's involved and demystifying it. I highly recommend you check it out. The video is 37MB- enjoy!

One of the other things that is emerging from this process for me is the need for believers to throw off the modern concept of individualized faith and recognize that the faith we have is not just about connecting vertically with God through experience and prayer, but it is equally about the journey of walking with Christ that we share with others who are following Christ. The richness and fibre of our faith is enhanced by commitment, interdependence and relationship with others. This podcast about community hilights some of these elements...

Since we're linking, Jason and Lori Boucher, who are the current associate pastors at the Life Centre, have recently begun individual blogs in an effort to communicate with their people and provide insight and wisdom about what it means to follow Christ and live in community with others. You can find Jason's blog here ( http://jasonboucher.typepad.com/jasonboucher/), and Lori's blog here (http://www.confessionsofapastorswife.blogspot.com/). They are two of my favourite people, and I can't express the amount of esteem I hold them in as leaders in the church. I hope you enjoy the resources I have mentioned above, and visit J and Lori's blogs often. They are refreshing and real people with a dedicated love for Christ.

Thanks! Check in with you again soon.

The first trickle....

2006-10-04T22:38:00.000-03:00

This, my first blog, is an assignment for a media class I am taking as part of the John Paul II Media Institute in Halifax, NS.

The goal of the institute?

The immediate goal of the institute is to train and equip young people who have
an interest in and skills for digital media creation... Those who complete
the institute would make themselves available to the local church for the
creation of media that would advance the Kingdom of God.

I have a history of involvement with media and technology of various types, and am participating in this course as a result of the realization that the church has as much to do with the state of the media as the media does. Namely, the church has walled itself off from the media, deeming it secular and treating it like the plague.

Consequently, the church has no real meaningful presence in the world of the media, and sees only periodic forays into media territory (see Mel Gibson's the Passion of the Christ).

The English philosopher Edmund Burke once said, "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” This is one of my favourite quotations, and it spurs me to be proactive about my faith, representing Christ credibly in my work and life, and to engage in affecting change in areas in which I see injustice, inequity or imbalance.

I believe media, or the means of communication, is amoral, or that it has no intrinsic roots in good or evil. It merely exists, and can be leverage by anyone, regardless of their motive. I am weary of hearing Christians bemoan the absence of media that celebrates truth, goodness and beauty, yet are unwilling to make any moves to influence the world of media.

In participating in this course, I am hoping to become conversant in the language and thinking of media and competent with its essential tools and structures, so that I have a shared platform with those who work in and with media to share my faith in meaningful relationship and dialogue.

I'm tired of having to lob intellectual and theological hand grenades over dividing walls at people who I can't really see for who they are (and vice versa). I'm not afraid of questions, or of being around people who don't share my faith or passions. How can questions be answered or people become familiar with the real face of faith, believers who are daily following Christ, if we aren't front and center in their lives in authentic relationships and speaking in ways that are accessible and meaningful to them?

Romans 10:14 But how can they call on him to save them unless
they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never
heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them?

This is a small first step on a journey to increased personal relevance in sharing my faith with people and making Jesus known through people seeing him at work in my life, work and creativity.

Watch out world of media. We're coming, and we're ready to hug you....